


The Boy Next Door

by AllotropicBi



Category: Bastille (Band)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, POV Second Person
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-28
Updated: 2015-06-28
Packaged: 2018-04-06 14:22:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 17
Words: 32,208
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4225116
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AllotropicBi/pseuds/AllotropicBi
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The first time you meet Dan is when your apartment building has a fire drill. At night. In winter. It all goes downhill from there.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Fire Drill

**Author's Note:**

> Fic originally posted on tumblr via [bastilleisimagined](http://bastilleisimagined.tumblr.com).  
> Migrated for my own reasons. Original author's note ought to be included, so.  
> Inspired by: Dan in a suit, Dan’s honey glazed laugh, and Dan’s hair in the Abbey Road recording of Flaws.

It should be illegal for apartment buildings to have fire drills at the start of the winter season. Honestly.

Part of you is a little panicky because you don’t get drills, so you’re sure it’s actually a real fire, or someone just tripped the alarm somehow or the other. It’s not even a half decent time. It’s 11 at night and you’re in a thin T-shirt and a pair of flannel pants. You have a pair of converse on that you got wet on the way out, what with the melting snow on the sidewalk, so your feet are soaked and slowly yet surely freezing over.

Yeah, maybe you were having a shameless Pirates of the Caribbean marathon with a tub of mint chocolate chip ice cream, but that’s no one’s business. More than anything else you’re dreading going back to find your precious treat melted on the coffee table. You would’ve put it in the freezer, but God knows you’re already too lazy and you could only manage dragging your ass off the sofa and out the building.

No one can judge you, right? You just had a bitter split with someone who you thought was your best friend, so what’s expected of you? That’s right. Nothing. You deserve some you time.

You hear someone grumble behind you and you turn out of instinct, rubbing your arms a little to get them warm. Some guy’s tapping his foot impatiently, checking his watch periodically. He’s in a suit, a simple black jacket and pants with a clean white shirt.

“Got somewhere to be?” You ask, curious as to why he’s all suited up at this time of night.

He looks up at you, and for a second the two of you don’t say a word. Maybe your breath hitches a little, maybe it doesn’t. Okay, fine,  _fine_. It does. But who can blame you? His blue eyes are warm and, unlike the icy shade you usually see in other people, dark blue. The words _ohmygodohmygodohmygodlookathimohmygodholdittogethergirl_  flood into your brain, a common occurrence whenever someone attractive so much as looks at you. But this.  _This_  is a little worse. You try not to let your eyes flick down to appreciate the perfect fitting of the tailored suit, but you can’t help it.

“Actually,” he says in a smooth voice, “yes. I was going to an after-party with my friends and I haven’t quite finished my hair just yet,” he brings a hand up to fiddle with his hair self-consciously. It looks fine to you, you think. Pressed flat but a little messy, just the right way to accent his stubble and cheekbones.

Instead of telling him how great his hair looks, you reply, “Who goes to an after-party all dressed up like that? What, is it some exclusive thing?”

He looks at you oddly, and then chuckles a bit. You immediately decide you like the sound of that. “Something like that,” he mutters, ducking his hair and scuffing his shoes against the pavement, looking a bit uncomfortable in his suit. “How about you? Date night?” He jokes, giving you a lopsided smile.

“Haha,” you say, rolling your eyes. “I was watching Pirates and eating a tub of ice cream,” you instantly redden at your words, cringing at your inability to filter whatever escapes from your mouth.

“Sounds… fun.”

“Ha. Yeah.”

He opens his mouth as if he’s about to say something, then pauses. “You’re cold,” he says instead.

You shrug, trying to ignore the fact that you can no longer feel your toes. Great. Just some frostbite to go with your  _perfect_  night.“Yeah, but I’ll manage. Just a few minutes more, right?”

“You must be new here,” the guy comments, watching you with amusement.

“Five months,” you reply, shrugging.

“Ah. Well these check ups usually take about fifteen minutes or so if you’re lucky,” he explains. You scrunch your nose at that and suddenly become aware of the cold wind biting at you. “I’m Dan, by the way,” he continues, extending his hand for you to shake. You take his hand ( _warmhandstightgripslightlyrough_ ) and reply with your name.

You’re not exactly sure what to do next, so you ask the most basic question you can think of, subconsciously rubbing your arms a little more. “So which floor are you on?”

“Fourth,” Dan says. He keeps regarding you with that amused expression and it’s confusing you. “How about you?”

“Same.”

“Interesting.”

There’s a slightly lull in the conversation where you stand awkwardly, rocking back and forth on your feet and blowing warm air onto your hands.

“Here,” Dan says, and you look up to find him holding his suit jacket out for you to take. You are  _such_  a sucker for nice guys.

“I couldn’t,” you refuse, holding your hands out despite the cold you feel, goosebumps rising on your arms.

“Aw it’s fine,” Dan says, urging you to take it. “I’ve dealt with worse.”

“… You sure?”

“Absolutely.”

Your fingers brush when he gives it to you, and both of you linger a little too long than what would be considered casual. By the time you’ve put the jacket on, you feel your cheeks getting warm even though it’s bitterly cold. “Thank you,” you mutter. He smiles at you, his laughter lines crinkling as that smile reaches his eyes. You blink, not used to such sincerity from a stranger.

You want to groan and complain because there’s no way a guy like this could be single.

“Thank you, but that’s where you’re wrong,” Dan says with a coy smile, and you realize you had muttered that last bit aloud.

Goddammit. You really need to work on your people skills so that you don’t let these things slip. You blush profusely, which causes Dan to chuckle a little. “How about you? Got someone to share that ice cream with?”

“Um,” you mumble, looking up, only to have your eyes roam across the fitting of the white shirt on his body. Nice guys dressed up smartly should be illegal, you decide. “No. Usually I would have my best friend over but…” you make a strangled noise and Dan gives you a sympathetic smile.

“What flavour is it?”

“Mint chocolate chip, and if you tell me that isn’t good every impression you have made on me will be wrecked by that one opinion.”

Dan laughs and raises a brow at you. “I’ve made impressions on you, huh?” You look stubbornly at the ground, cursing yourself for not having worded it better. “I would never harbour such a distasteful opinion,” he continues. You really want him to tell you he’s a massive drug dealer or something of the sorts because you don’t think it’s safe for you to be falling so hard so fast. “Got any others?”

“I have Neapolitan, though that’s usually a war in itself because you either mix the strawberry and vanilla, or the chocolate and vanilla, but the chocolate and strawberry don’t go together. Who even invented that?”

“Dumbest idea ever,” Dan says, and you nod seriously.

“Got this new cupcake sundae thing that I haven’t tried yet, among a few others. I like to keep my stock full and diverse.”

“Good to know.” He nods towards the building and you turn to see people heading back in. The two of you walk back together, and when you’re in you hand him his jacket.

“Thanks,” you say again, slightly saddened by the loss of the comforting scent, but he pretty much makes up for it by putting the jacket back on because  _damn_  he looks good in a suit. You crowd into the elevator (which has conveniently started working again) with a bunch of other people, and Dan smiles down apologetically at you when he’s pressed up against you in the tight space. Not that you mind.

When you get out, you bid Dan a goodbye. “Have fun fixing your hair.”

He lifts a hand and touches it as if he’d forgotten and laughs again. You can’t get  _enough_  of that sound. It’s the most adorable laugh you’ve heard from anyone ever, a kind of embarrassed, gentle laugh that makes your stomach fill up with those cliche butterflies. You kind of want a laugh like that in your life for as long as you live.

“Thanks.”

“It looks great though,” you say quickly, internally grimacing at how lame that sounded. “Kind of messy but still neat… you could pass just like that.”

Dan tilts his head a little, his mouth quirking up into a smile. “You know,” he starts, glancing at his watch. “I’m already late. If you’re up for some company I would totally be up for trying out that cupcake ice cream you mentioned.”

You really wish you weren’t as awkward as you are, standing there dumbstruck for a few seconds before responding. “Yeah, of course.”

“Wicked,” he says. “Which flat are you? I’ll just change and drop by.”

“You don’t have to,” you rush out, biting your tongue. “I mean. Unless you’re uncomfortable or whatever,” you add, waving your hands a little to try and come off casual, but you know it just makes the situation worse.

Dan ponders it for a moment but to go with it. The two of you enter your apartment, and you’re suddenly thankful that being upset gives you the urge to clean. You shove your blanket over to one side of the couch and pick up the soggy box of mint chocolate chip, looking disheartened when you find it melting at the edges so that it sloshes around in the box.

You sigh and take it to the freezer, grabbing the cupcake sundae box and a couple of bowls, taking some out for the both of you.

“Nice place,” Dan comments, taking his jacket off and placing it on the back of a chair. It’s such an expected, generic compliment that it shouldn’t make you feel the way it does.

You make your way back to the couch and hand Dan his ice cream, pulling the blanket over your legs. You tug it a little bit in his direction and he takes it gratefully, both of you getting warm under the cover. Every movement makes you more aware of his presence, but that, coupled with the stress you felt earlier just makes you feel calm. Weird.

“So who’s going to be the brave one and try it first?” You ask.

Dan looks at you like  _that_  again, a little devious glint in his eye. “I’ll let you know,” he says before taking a bit on the spoon and putting it in his mouth. You snap your eyes away from his mouth when you hear him make a little hum of approval. Shit. Hopefully he didn’t notice you staring.

Halfway through your bowl of ice cream, you nearly choke when you catch Dan slightly unbuttoning his shirt, your face reddening as you look away.

“Do you always keep the heat on this high?” He asks airily.

You mutter something incomprehensible, keeping your eyes fixed firmly on your bowl of ice cream. Goddammit, he  _knows_  the effect he has on you.

“Are you always like this?” You ask, sounding shier than you would have liked to.

“Not particularly,” he mumbles. “To be honest I think the suit does it for me.” You blush a little, and he notices, judging by the grin that’s growing on his lips. “It does it for you, at least.”

You whine and push him away, grumpily leaning back against the couch. You press play on the remote and watch as Jack runs like a madman down the beach.

“Aw come on,” Dan says, still smiling, and you can practically feel him roll his eyes before he puts an arm over your shoulders. He does that laugh again, and you can’t help but lean against him a little for it.

So an accidental fire alarm isn’t the  _worst_  thing in the world. Still pretty shitty, but not the worst you decide.


	2. A Run In

Grocery shopping on a tight budget is always tricky. You cart the trolley down the aisles and look for your favourite noodles. You hate when the shops rearrange all their stock. What’s the point of doing that anyway? It just confuses people. Life is disorderly enough without the trouble of trying to find the fruits and veggies, which used to be where the toiletries are now.

You find your noodles and toss a dozen packs into the trolley, moving on to the aisle with canned sauces. You don’t cook much, but you can throw some sauce in a pan and mix in your own balance of spices and herbs to keep it fresh. Any of your friends that come over say your pasta is the best. If only they knew.

Further down, you crouch down and try to decide between fettuccine, macaroni, bow tie, fusilli, penne…yeah, you’re a little indecisive. Pasta is your favourite, and you like variety. Maybe the variety only comes in shapes, but whatever. This time, you settle on the penne and stand up, grimacing when you get up and hear your knees crack. You really ought to get on that whole exercise schedule you had thought of for your New Year’s resolution. You push the thought out of your mind, excusing it with the reminder that it’s late November. Workouts can wait till next year.

When you turn around to your trolley, you unexpectedly bump into someone, steadying yourself by unintentionally setting your hands on their chest.

“I’m so-” you start, cut off when you look up to see Dan grinning down at you. You haven’t seen him since the night of the fire drill, which is weird considering the two of you spent the rest of the Pirates movie making lame comments and chuckling at Dan’s imitations. You would’ve gotten his number, but… well. You kind of fell asleep against him towards the end, and when you woke up he was gone. That was at least a month ago now.

You blush a little at the memory and your current position, only just remembering to take your hands off of him. “Sorry,” you mumble out.

“Hello to you too,” he says. You force a smile and look up at him properly. He looks pretty much the same, only he has glasses on and his hair’s styled into a quiff. Thankfully, he isn’t in a suit this time (which honestly would be a little weird at the shops…), so your sanity isn’t on the line.

“Haven’t seen you in a while,” you comment, taking a step back and putting your pasta with the rest of the things.

“Nope,” he replies, popping the p.

You frown for a second. “Were you just creeping on me? Like, were you just standing there waiting for me to get up? Because you sure didn’t seem to be passing by.”

Dan raises his hand in surrender and laughs a little. You narrow your eyes and punch his shoulder a little, only making him laugh more. You wish his laugh isn’t so pretty.

“How are you?”

“Fine,” you reply, walking around the trolley and pushing it along the aisle. Dan follows you and you’re not entirely sure how you feel about that. “You?”

“I’m doing alright, thanks. What’ve you been up to these days?”

You glance at him, turning the corner into the baking goods. It always smells sweet and comforting in this area of the store. It reminds you of when you used to bake cakes with your mum back home. Man, you miss her.

“Just the same stuff as always. Going through the last year of uni so that’s… something.”

“Ah,” Dan says. He turns on his heel and starts walking backwards so he can talk to you face to face, which you find more than a little endearing. “What are you studying?”

“Education.”

“What level?”

“High school,” you respond. You stop walking to pick up some cake flour and icing sugar, and you see Dan slip in a bag of chocolate chips. You don’t bother putting them back on the shelf, because even if he doesn’t take them, you’ll end up eating them while watching Thor. That’s your plan for Saturday. That’s it. What an invigorating life.

“Teaching the brats, huh? How do you think that’s gonna be?”

A mischievous smile spreads across your lips as you respond, “Well I can manage you, so I don’t see why they’d be any worse.”

Dan’s jaw drops in mock surprise, his voice absolutely scandalized. “Well, I never!”

You share a laugh, coming to the end of the aisle. “What are you even here for anyway? Doesn’t look like you’re shopping.”

“Actually I’m here with my girlfriend,” he says. Your foot falters a bit, but it’s only showing a fraction of the disappointment you feel inside. Oh, right. Yeah. Girlfriend.

“Last I heard, you were single,” you say coolly. You’ve perfected masking emotions around people, and it just happens to come in handy from time to time. Like this one.

You command your stomach to stop flipping when he does that airy laugh again. “Yeah.” He brings a hand up to the back of his head and ruffles his hair a bit. “Yeah, I was. A lot can happen in a month, I suppose.”

“No kidding.”

“And you?”

“Still a pringle,” you joke, and Dan gives a short laugh. “Where is she then?”

“Right behind you, actually,” he says, waving to someone further ahead. You turn around to see a peppy brunette walk up to both of you. As soon as she gets close enough, she wraps an arm around Dan and presses a quick kiss to his cheek. You suddenly feel very intrusive.

“Who’s this?” She asks, giving you a side-glance. Dan introduces you to his girlfriend, Bri, and you’re forced to act nice. She seems… a little too loud for Dan. Not that you’re in any position to judge.

“I should really get going,” you mutter, gesturing to your trolley.

“Oh hey, Dan,” Bri says, tugging on his sleeve. “We should invite her to my birthday party! Since you two know each other an’ all. I know you’re not all that fond of my friends.”

“Uh,” Dan hesitates, looking at you for help.

“It’s settled then!” She says, smiling at you broadly. “Dan will give you the details, I really need to finish up and get going. See you later!”

And just like that, your new partial enemy Bri walks away.

“C’mon Danny!” She calls, and Dan cringes at the nickname.

“It’s Daniel, if anything,” he complains, though only loud enough for you to hear. “I’ll catch you later?” You nod and give him a tight-lipped smile. “And hey,” he whispers, “just between you and me, banana chocolate chip muffins are my favourite.” Dan winks at you before following after his girlfriend.

Really, you shouldn’t be angry, or jealous, or anything at all. You should be indifferent about him having a girlfriend, but you can’t deny the little green monster that’s giving you an unsettled feeling in the pit of your stomach.

You pay for your stuff and leave, thankfully not running into Dan and Bri again.

Later that night, when you’re sat on the couch, laptop balanced on your stomach, you decide to google recipes for banana chocolate chip muffins. 


	3. Muffins

When you put in the second tray of muffins into the oven the next day, you vehemently argue that you’re not making these in the hopes that you’ll get into Dan’s good books. He has a girlfriend. You’re just being friendly and all, right? And hey, he’s the one that told you he likes them.

You were always a fan of your mum’s banana bread, so you can’t see how badly this would end, even if the whole batch of 24 is left for yourself. You’ll probably unload some on a few of your friends and just store the rest for daily snacks. Or hourly. Everyone has a weak spot, and yours just happens to be a sweet one.  

You head back to the sofa and plop down, grabbing blindly for the remote. TLC is showing reruns of  _Say Yes To The Dress_. You’ve seen too many episodes for it to be anything interesting now. Sweetheart necklines, conservative parents and even worse grandparents, as well as fights among the brides and bridesmaids. Same old shit.  

You check the movie channel and see that Thor is on. You’d almost forgotten about your plans, too caught up in your baking to think about Chris Hemsworth and Tom Hiddleston all dressed up, ready to destroy the peace between Asgard and Jotunheim. Unfortunately you flipped to the channel just in time for an advert, but it gives you enough time to shoot up from the couch and grab the bag of left over chocolate chips sitting on the counter.

You’re at your favourite part of the intro, where Loki tries to convince Thor not to start a battle, only to have the Frost Giant provoke Thor by calling him a little princess. Even though you know every line by heart, it still has you on edge when Loki says, “Damn.” And just as Thor swings around to knock the Frost Giant out, there’s a knock on your door. You groan a little, pausing the movie so you can take it back and feel the build up of suspense into the immense battle scene without interruption.

“Who is it?” You yell, getting up and heading to the door. No one responds, and it irks you. You make the effort to ask who it is, but when they don’t respond, you’re forced to open the door and be either pleasantly surprised, or even more irritated than before. It happens way too much and it pisses you off because really, what does it take to just reply with your name?

You grudgingly open the door to see none other than Dan standing in front of you. You blink twice, and before you can say anything, Dan’s pushing past you ( _ohcloseclose)_  and he sniffs the air a little.

“Is that what I think it is?” He asks, tilting his head to the side a little, smiling at you.

“Uhuh,” you reply, giving yourself a moment before shutting the door and heading towards the oven, crouching down to check on them.

“Wicked.”

You stay for a moment, pawing through your scattered thoughts to find something coherent to say. “So, what’s up? Smelt the muffins from the hallway, or you got something to tell me?”

You get up and move over to the sink for lack of anything better to do. Your movie’s been interrupted and there’s still a few things that need washing before you can totally relax, so you figure you might as well clean up.

“Can’t pay a visit to a friend?” He asks, leaning against the counter, just a few inches of space between you. You wish you weren’t so self-conscious of every movement, every word that passes your lips, and especially your looks.

You aren’t the prettiest, but you know that you can pull off looking cute sometimes. Key word: sometimes. You, like everyone except Emily Bett Rickards and a small number of other stunning women, have your bad angles. You’re convinced that you only have one good angle, and that too only when you’re stood a certain distance away from the mirror and squinting a little. That way all the imperfections blend and vanish.

You feel like tugging at your hair for thinking these things. Like he said, you’re friends. Nothing more. Hardly even that, since the two of you have only ever talked two times before. God, you’ve been single for way too long that having one attractive guy friend sets you off.

“Of course,” you reply, focusing your attention on the batter stuck to the ice cream scoop, “but given that we hardly know each other beyond first names and… Come to think of it, you know where I live, but all I know about where you live is that you’re on this floor.”

“423,” Dan answers without skipping a beat. You’re a little surprised that he told you so easily, but then again you put up a fair point. “Just take a right when you go out and follow the corridor to - ”

“I’ll manage,” you say, amusement seeping into your voice. Honestly, it’s not that hard to find an apartment when all of them are numbered systematically.

“Right. I should shut up now.”

You roll your eyes and smile while scraping gooey batter off the edges of a mixing bowl, running some hot water to dissolve the rest so that you can swill it out. “It’s fine. So,” you start, realizing you’d gotten side tracked, “Why are you here again?”

“Oh yeah!” Dan says, pushing himself up onto the counter. He swings his legs back and forth, and you hold back the urge to call him a child. “Bri’s party.” You immediately regret your attempt to get the conversation back on track.

“Uhuh?”

“It’s actually tomorrow. You don’t have class on Monday or anything do you? Cause if you do we wouldn’t blame you for not coming.”

“No, I’m on break.” You rinse off the soapsuds from the dishes and begin lining them up on the drying rack, being very meticulous about where you put each item. Maximize the space so you don’t have to dry and put things away just to make more room is your philosophy. For washing dishes, at least. You don’t think it would be a very good philosophy for life.

“Fantastic! So uh,” Dan says, and his voice is noticeably quieter. You look up to see him staring at his feet as they go to and fro. “Bri’s kind of… Out of our class?” You furrow your eyebrows, hoping for some clarification. “She’s… her parents own some big company or the other. So birthday parties for rich people tend to be more social events with stuck up snobs who don’t care for middle class people like us. It also means formal wear,” Dan says, scrunching his nose at the last bit. “Hate wearing suits,” he mumbles.

“But why? You look really good in them,” you blurt out, unable to stop yourself at the thought of Dan in a suit.  _Again_. “Oh my god I didn’t mean to say that,” you say, eyes wide and pleading.

Dan chuckles, but you see his cheeks colouring a little and… okay. Whatever that means. “It’s okay, I appreciate it.”

“Smug bastard,” you mutter, making Dan laugh again, only this time it’s that slightly breathy laugh that makes you yearn for someone special in your life. In that moment, you kind of hate him.

“How long till the muffins are done?” Dan asks, finally getting off the counter when you finish off, drying your hands on a towel.

“About 15 minutes.”

“Do I have to wait that long?” Dan whines, looking longingly towards the oven.

“If you really want one, I guess so.”

Dan sighs dramatically and heads over to the couch, picking up the bag of chocolate chips as he sits down. “Thor? Sweet!” You roll your eyes and follow over, kicking his feet down from your spot.

“And these,” you snap, plucking the bag of chocolatey goodness from his hands, “are mine.”

You rewind the movie back to where you wanted it and hit play, subconsciously tucking your feet under something to warm them up. You only notice that something happens to be Dan’s leg when he makes a little noise in the back of his throat.

“Sorry,” you say, retracting your feet from the warmth they were wedged in. The corner of Dan’s mouth quirks up in a smile and he gestures for you to put your feet back, so you do. Reluctantly, you tell yourself (though you know you are more than willing to), you wriggle your feet back between the sofa and Dan’s leg. For a second, you’re tense, but as soon as both your focuses shift to the movie, your body loosens up a little.

At one point, Dan pokes your calf and raises his eyebrows at you, making you roll your eyes and check your watch. “Five minutes,” you tell him, and he pouts. “Deal with it.”

After those five minutes, when you get up to check on the oven, you hear a weird gurgling noise. You turn to Dan, who’s looking up at you sheepishly. “I haven’t exactly eaten much today,” he explains.

“Do you expect me to feed you?” You ask, opening the oven door, hit smack in the face with the sweet aroma of the hot muffins. Oh, they smell  _goooood_. You take the two trays out and set them on the cooktop to cool, making your way back inside.

“I thought they were done!” Dan exclaims, throwing his head back to emphasize his desire for food.

“You forgot about cooling time.”

He rolls his head over to the side to look at you and says, a little childishly, “Is there anything else to eat?”

You sigh and push yourself back off the couch. “You know, my chill time consisted of a lot less getting up and a lot more watching the movie till you got here.” You didn’t even get to press play before you were back up again. “I have some pasta left over from last night,” you suggest.

“Honestly, anything is good right now,” Dan says, his voice a lot closer than you’d expected. You’re careful not to turn around to see if he’s close behind you, because you can practically feel him looming over you anyway.

As you’re taking the leftovers out from the fridge, you catch Dan reaching for a muffin out of the corner of your eye.

“Don’t you dare,” you warn, immediately seeing Dan’s hand recoil.

The muffins are taken out of their baking trays and set on a cooling rack whilst the pasta is in a pan, heating up on the cooker. You grab a couple of bowls from the cupboard, along with two forks and a pair of glasses.

“Drink?”

“Just some water.”

Eventually everything’s done and the two of you head inside, finally sitting down to get back to the movie and eat.

“Did you make this yourself? The sauce, I mean.”

“Kind of. Mix of fresh and canned.”

“Ah. It’s wicked.”

You glance over at him and smile genuinely. “Thanks.”

You get back into the movie again, both of you eating as you watch the film pan out, paying special attention whenever Loki’s on screen. Hey, baby Loki has his moments, alright?

You get caught up in watching it, almost forgetting the muffins completely until Dan groans, throwing his head back. “That smell is driving me up the wall,” he complains, looking longingly over to the kitchen.

“Go grab us some then, they should be cool by now.”

“Really?” He asks, the eagerness laced in his voice making you giggle. He’s up and off the couch in a matter of seconds, coming back to the sofa with two muffins in hand. You have to admit: they do smell pretty good.

“Here, take it,” Dan says, handing you one. He settles back into the sofa and breaks a chunk off, popping it right in his mouth.

“And the verdict is?”

The response you get is a solid, drawn out moan.

In context, it proves to be pretty innocent, but the sound makes your mind jump to bad places. You pinch the back of your neck as an alternative to slapping yourself and force your mind out of the gutter. It’s not your fault that his food appreciative moans sound that good. Any guy you’ve heard that kind of noise from sounded like a constipated moose. You force yourself to look away from Dan’s neck as he swallows.

“So good,” Dan replies, taking off another piece. “Thank you for these. I haven’t had them in ages.”

You shrug it off and try to turn your attention back to the film, part of your brain constantly keeping check of Dan in your peripheral vision.

You’re so screwed.


	4. Burnt Up

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Outfits:  
> [Bri](http://www.ilikethatdress.com/store/faviana/beaded-illusion-stretch-mesh-cocktail-dresses-by-faviana-glamour-59100234615373/)  
> [You](http://www.aliexpress.com/store/product/vestidos-de-fiesta-classy-one-shoulder-red-semi-formal-short-tight-prom-dresses-lace-sweetheart-gorgeous/213495_1541335272.html)  
> [Dan](http://data1.whicdn.com/images/81846600/large.jpg)  
> The title like... turnt up b/c the party EYYY

Dan stayed for the entire movie, which was kind of nice. You had expected him to take the muffin and go, or at least take a handful before leaving. He did neither, only reminding you to attend tomorrow. He said he would’ve offered to take you there, but he has to be there extra early with Bri to help out with some stuff, so that wasn’t much of a choice. You made him give you his number under the excuse that it would be more efficient to text than have him come over every time, not that you minded it at all.

When you’re getting ready, you’re convinced your entire being is exuding the fragrance of the muffins. You don’t want to smother yourself in perfume, because that would just be ten times worse. You don’t exactly want to keep it either, but you don’t think it would be wise to mix that kind of smell with some intense flowers either, so you just go with it.

Formal wear. Right. For a birthday party of some rich girl. How did her and Dan become a thing again? You slap yourself mentally for thinking that and look at what you have.

 _– What’s considered acceptable for this kind of party?_ you text Dan, hoping he’ll reply fast enough.

_\- Wish I knew. Bri is forcing me into a suit for the night. Got a dress?_

_– Plenty_ , you reply, biting your lip to peel away at some dry skin that’s there.

–  _But I’m not sure which ones are good for a formal party. Any idea what she’s wearing? I’d hate to clash._

_\- Black? I’ll double check._

_– Thanks_

You sigh and look hopelessly at your cupboard. Honestly, none of your party dresses were ever bought with the intention of presenting it to posh people.

_\- “That one beaded Favania cocktail dress! I showed it to you the other day and you said it was a stunner and sure to be unforgettable!” Her words, not mine._

_– HAH good job there. Don’t suppose you remember the colours at least?_

_\- Eh just some silver and gold stuff, no proper colour… not black at all. Oops._

Your lip quirks up in a smile and you reply with a quick  _see you tonight_  before looking back at your closet. Sighing deeply, you paw through the dresses that are shoved to one wall. A red one catches your eye. You haven’t worn it since high school prom and you’re not sure if it will fit, but it’s worth a shot.

It’s cheap, but it’ll look decent enough once you iron it a little. You squeeze into it and straighten out the crinkles, assessing yourself in the mirror. It’s red. Red with lace and a solid sash around the waist. It has a trail of lace going up one shoulder, and to you it looks acceptable.

So you’ve never been much of a fashion-oriented girl, and you can’t recite the exact style and name of the dress, but all you need to know is that you look half decent in it. Key word: half. You tug at the hem of the dress, trying to get the lace to somehow stretch down and cover up your knees. Ugh. Maybe once you iron it out it’ll be better. You sigh and peel the dress off, changing back into a tank and some sweats. You have plenty of time to get ready later.

You waste a couple of hours lazing about on the couch, flicking between various channels, sighing dramatically when you’re forced to accept that there’s nothing on. Why do they always schedule the interesting stuff for when you’re not home? You decide that an episode of _How It’s Made_  is enough to hold your interest for a few minutes, and just enough to put you to sleep.

~~~

You wake up with a start, feeling your phone vibrate repeatedly against your stomach. You feel like weeping because oh  _gosh_  when did you resign to being so lazy? You could’ve gotten so much done today. Oh well.

_Running late?_

Shit.

It’s not like you meant to end up rushing to get ready for Bri’s party; you’re not trying  _that_  hard to avoid her. You repeatedly hit yourself on the forehead on your way to your room, grabbing the iron on the way there.

“C’mon,” you mumble, plugging it in and setting up the ironing board. You run a quick list of what you have to do: hair, dress, makeup, and accessories. You can manage that, right?

Wrong.

While the iron’s heating up, you plug in your straighteners as well and open the top drawer of your dresser. Right. You glance back at your dress and decide what would work and rush to get a base of foundation on with some blush and a bit of eye makeup.

Something’s not right. You sniff the air and turn around, only to see your straighteners toppled over, effectively burning the carpet.

“Fuck!” You rush over and pick it up, moving it to a flatter surface. What do you do with burnt carpet? Ugh.

You groan in frustration and quickly iron your dress, setting it back on the bed and making sure not to burn anything else.

You finish up your eyeliner and heave a sigh of relief. Alright. Hair can be done after the dress you decide, at least then you know you won’t mess your hair up. You change quickly and fiddle around, trying to get the zipper all the way up. This is a nightmare.

You look at your small inventory of jewellery and pop on a small gold chain and a pair of diamond studs your mum once gave you. Simple is good.

You can’t figure out what hair would work, so for the time being you put it up in a high ponytail. From some angles it almost looks acceptable. Whatever, you’re late– and lazy– enough; it can stay.

You groan and rush around, making sure anything that can burn the place down is unplugged before clearing up a little and grabbing your purse, throwing in your phone and a couple other necessities. Time to run.

~~~

You make it to the party an entire hour late, but it doesn’t seem to make too much of a difference. Driving up to the front of the grand mansion, you hand your car over to a valet, suddenly self-conscious of your used car, and walk up the stairs that sweep across the porch. Dang. Rich folks, huh?

You’re not the latest, thank God. There are still quite a crowd of people filing into the place slowly.

When you enter the door, you’re greeted with a middle-aged woman who over enthusiastically pulls you in for a hug. She smells like she’s soaked in perfume.

“Oh, you must be one of Bri’s friends!” She says excitedly.

“Dan’s actually,” you correct, figuring that she’ll know of Bri’s boyfriend if she knows her well enough. Something about her peppiness makes you pass her off as Bri’s mother. “We’re neighbours, live on the same floor.”

“Oh!” She exclaims, beaming, albeit falsely. “Well isn’t that quaint!”

Wow.  _Quaint_.

“You can drop off your jacket over there honey, I’m sure you’ll find those two lovebirds somewhere!”

You force a smile and head over to where she’d mentioned you could hand in your jacket.

Now to find the  _lovebirds_. Ugh, how it makes you want to puke. You zigzag your way through the crowd, walking on your tip toes to try and spot Dan. You figure you’ll find him easily enough by his hair.

There are too many people here, all dressed up and looking way too old to be here for Bri. Probably for business relations to be upheld, you figure.

You sigh and head over to the bar when you can’t find him, ordering a quick glass of water. You were in too much of a rush when you left the house to down anything and your mouth still feels dry from the nap. Nasty.

Once you have your glass, you go back to walking around, avoiding the scrutinizing glances of some older women. It’s not like you’re dressed in the skimpiest thing here. You brush it off, but you’re still a little on edge.

Maybe that’s why you’re not looking where you’re going, not noticing you’re walking straight into someone until you bump into them, water sloshing over the edges of your glass.

“Oh my god,” you exclaim, eyes widening at the wet patch on the man’s shirt. “I’m  _so_  sorry!”

“It’ll dry.” Your eyes snap up to see Dan smiling at you. “Might be sticky though, but I’m sure I’ll find a change in here somewhere.”

“Oh no,” you say, shaking your head quickly. “No, no, it’s just water. I only just got here I wasn’t about to have a drink this early.”

Dan laughs a little and tugs the wet material away from his skin a little. “Well you lasted longer than I did, regardless. I had one before this thing even began.”

“Oh,” you say for a lack of a better response. You take a quick moment to look at him properly. It’s just a grey button up shirt under a black jacket with some dress pants, but he makes it look better than it actually is.

“You look amazing,” Dan says. He’s doing this thing where he’s smiling really genuinely, so much so that it reaches his eyes and you just want to melt into a puddle right then and there. Unfortunately physics doesn’t allow for that, so you have to settle for pursing your lips in a tight smile while failing to suppress a blush.

“Thank you. You too, though,” you comment, turning the attention back to him. It’s not a big deal anyway; compliments on appearances at parties are commonplace. “Where’s the birthday girl anyway?”

“Should be around, let me go find her,” Dan mutters, already turning away before you can stop him. You blink at the empty space he left behind. Now you’re stranded in a crowd of strangers. Again. Great.

Someone walks by with a tray of champagne glasses, one of which you graciously accept, trading it for your half empty glass of water . Anything to numb your mind a little.

“Come here often?”

You turn around to see a fairly tall, handsome man standing in front of you. “Uh, no. This is my first time actually.”

“Hmm,” he says, eyes drifting coolly over the heads in the crowd before settling them back on you. “So you’re a new friend or journalist of some kind?”

“One of Dan’s friends,” you explain, taking another sip from the glass. You feel like walking away, even though you know it’d be rude.

“Dan?”

“Bri’s boyfriend?”

“Right, right.” He extends his hand, and you cautiously shake it. Alright. “My name’s- ”

“There you are!” Dan exclaims, squeezing past a few people and grinning brightly at you. Bri’s in tow, her hand in Dan’s.

The dude, whoever he is, looks between the three of you, eyes lingering a little on Bri. “I’ll be leaving now,” he mumbles, walking away. Well that was awkward.

You frown and shrug it off, turning your attention back to Bri. “Happy birthday!” You say, smiling genuinely for once before leaning forward to hug her. She hugs you back, beaming at you when you let go.

“Thank you! And thank you for coming! I know it was probably out of your way and all, but it means a lot!”

“It’s no problem!” You assure, thinking gravely about your poor burnt carpet. You can only hope that whenever you move out you’ll cover it up with a rug well enough that no one will even think to look under there.

Just as Dan slips his arm around Bri’s waist ( _you’renotjealous_ ), she leans up to whisper something into Dan’s ear. Dan nods understandingly and gives her a quick kiss before letting her go.

“She had to go meet some of her parents’ friends. She said to take you down to the library in about five minutes and she’ll be there with a few of her friends.”

“Sounds fine to me,” you say, downing the last sip of your champagne.

Dan watches with amusement before asking, “You want another?”

“No. I – maybe?” He laughs and excuses himself, promising to be back within seconds.

Thankfully this time you don’t get approached by some random guy, and Dan’s back in no time with two glasses.

“Thanks,” you say, ducking your head a little.

“What did that guy want from you before?” Dan asks, swirling the glass in his hand a little before taking a sip.

“To be honest I don’t know. He was about to introduce himself before you came back, actually.”

Dan grins at you. “I’ve got good timing then, huh?”        

“The best. What’s the problem with him?”

“One of Bri’s exes,” Dan explains. “Better if you stay away from him.”

“Why, because Bri won’t let you be friends with someone who might be interested in her ex?” You suggest, words slipping out of your mouth before you can catch them.

Dan looks at you strangely. “No. He’s just a douche.” Oh. Oops. “And I didn’t know you were interested.”

“I’m not,” you correct quickly. “No, I was just… My mouth was working ahead of my brain. Does that sometimes.”

“Good to know.”

“So…”

“Wanna head to the library now? We can wait there, since there’s not much to do here.”

You shrug, following Dan as he weaves through the crowd. More middle aged (and then some) people glance at you distastefully, turning back to their groups and muttering not so discreetly. Something tells you tonight is not going to end well if you two keep at this…


	5. Party Tricks

“So, you got any party tricks?” One of Bri’s friends asks Dan. He shrugs bashfully.

“Not really. I mean, I have this one thing, but it’s not that good.”

You glance at Bri who seems otherwise occupied with one of her friends. You frown a little, turning your attention back to Dan when the guy he was talking to announces, “Hey guys, Dan’s got something to show us!”

In a matter of seconds, Dan goes from looking shell-shocked to laughing nervously, and then he grins sheepishly. “It’s… It’s really idiotic, but yeah.”

You bite your lower lip in attempt to contain a smile and watch Dan roll his head around a bit, stretching his neck.

“Alright,” he says, looking nervously around the room. When his eyes land on you, you’re almost sure you see the corner of his mouth twitch up in a smile. Nah.

And… Well you’re not sure how to describe it. He – he kind of moves his head around in a horizontal circle, reminding you of nothing less than an owl. You blink a few times before you lose it, bringing a hand in front of your mouth to try and hide your uncontrollable grin.

When you turn to see the reaction of the rest of the room, it’s almost as if they were never there, slowly drifting back to the main room. Oh.

Bri goes over and rubs Dan’s shoulder sympathetically. “It’s okay babe, they just have a different sense of humour.”

“Mm hmm,” Dan hums, not looking phased at all. Bri goes on her tiptoes and kisses him quickly.

“You know how much I want to stick around, Dan, but business calls.”

“Yeah,” Dan mutters, smiling before pulling her in for a hug and placing a kiss atop her head. You look away uncomfortably, briefly wondering if you should leave the two alone. Before you can think on it more, Bri waves you goodbye and skips out of the room.

“You alright?” You ask. Surely his ego has to be hurt after that humiliation.

“Never been better,” he replies, a particularly wide grin revealing a crooked tooth. Aww.

You furrow your eyebrows. He just… “You just did your party trick that they forced you to do and those assholes just walked away… How are you not even a little pissed off right now?”

Dan shrugs and walks over to you, leaning back against a pool table. “I may or may not have done it on purpose. Don’t know if you’ve noticed, but stuck up people aren’t exactly my type of crowd.”

“Are you… no. No, you didn’t just make yourself look like an idiot just for that.”

Dan frowns. “I thought it was pretty funny.”

“Oh my god I did too, but they clearly were unimpressed and will probably never talk to you again, you - ”

Dan shrugs again, a smile growing on his lips. “I honestly don’t give a shit.”

“But Bri…”

“Bri knows I don’t like them. It’s not about them, anyway. So it’s fine.”

“You sure?”

“Yep.” He pushes himself off the table and says, “C’mon let’s go home.”

“Wha-”

“Why can I smell your muffins?” Dan asks, sniffing the air looking like a confused puppy. Honestly, someone is testing you.

“I… Their scent kind of sticks,” you murmur, feeling a heat crawl up your neck. God, you’re probably turning the same shade as your dress.

“That’s fortunate.”

“Sure.” Dan starts walking towards the exit, but you stop him. “Are you serious about going back home?”

“Of course!”

“But,” you hesitate, “what about Bri?”

“Oh, don’t worry,” Dan says, waving a hand dismissively. “She’ll be busy till the end of the night; I won’t see her again. She won’t really notice I’m gone, and even if she does she won’t be mad.”

“Oh. Fine, but only if you’re sure about that.” Dan rolls his eyes at you, gesturing for you to follow.

Just as you two reach the entrance back to the main hall, you pause. “But… I don’t know, aren’t you ever worried about what people will say? I’ve gotten more dirty looks since I got here than I have my entire life.”

Dan regards you thoughtfully. “Look around. Does it look like I’m important?”

“Well that’s not a nice way to think of yourself,” you say, frowning at Dan’s self-deprecating comment.

“You know what I mean,” he says. He looks tired, and you suddenly feel sad. “I’m not important to these guys. They don’t care what I do or don’t do.”

Before you can stop yourself, you blurt out, “Well why do you put up with it then? Like… aren’t you sick of being disregarded and just tossed aside all the time? Don’t you think you deserve more than that?”

Dan’s jaw tightens a bit, his eyes going a little cold. “I don’t care about any of this,” he says defensively. “I do it for Bri. She’s… I don’t care what all of these guys think of me; she’s worth it.”

You stand there, unable to look him in the eyes. Why does your mouth have to run at the worst times? “I- I’m sorry, really. I didn’t mean to say it, I just…”

“It’s fine,” Dan mutters, though the way he looks away from you while scratching his stubble a little seems standoffish to you. “It took me a while to get used to it. I don’t blame you anyway, most of my other friends have said similar things.”

“I’m sorry,” you repeat quietly. This time, he looks up at you and smiles warmly.

“It’s fine, alright?”

You nod, still feeling a little shitty for saying anything out of place.

“Now that we’re on the topic,” you continue, already aware that you’re pushing it. “Don’t you… fair enough you don’t care what they think, but what about Bri?”

“She’ll be fine with it,” he reassures, about to head back into the crowd, but you catch him by the arm.

“I – I know you say that, but… I don’t know. I just know how girls think and… Sometimes when you have a girl and a boy being friends some people never see it as  _just friends_.”

Dan cocks his head to the side, opening his mouth to say something before stopping himself. “Do  _you_  think a girl and boy can be  _just_  friends?” He asks.

You blink at him. Of course you do. With anyone else but Dan, of course you do. But you know how you feel about him. “Well yeah, but that’s - ”

“Good,” Dan interrupts. “Let’s go.”

Before you can stop him again, Dan’s out the hallway, weaving through the crowd to the front entrance. You groan inwardly and make your way over to where the coats are kept.

Honestly, you don’t think Dan will be all that eager to hang out with you anymore. You practically insulted Bri without meaning to, but he still acted nice about it. Probably just wants to get the night over with and finish it with a smile so he doesn’t make a scene, or maybe he’s not the confrontational type.

You head over to the room where the jackets are kept, handing the person tending to the room your number.

“Not here!” You hear someone not far off. There’s a short, quick giggle followed by a gasp. It sounds familiar… “No!” She shouts playfully. “Dan’s still here somewhere, we can’t! He’ll be gone later tonight and you can stay then, but not now!” It sounds like Bri.

You don’t want to hear anymore. You try to block out what you think you might be hearing by focusing on the sound of your heart thrumming, but it doesn’t do much to cover up the man’s smooth voice. It’s distinctly not Dan-like.

Just as you hear footsteps rounding the corner, you duck into the room to avoid being seen. Suddenly you don’t feel too hot.

When you’re sure whoever it was has left, you step back outside, just as the boy comes back with your jacket. You offer him thanks in the form of a quick tip and turn around, bumping right into Bri.

“Oh,” you say.

“Hey! You’re going?” She says. You notice the slight flush on her cheeks and feel like throwing up.

“Yeah, I don’t feel too good. It was a lovely party, sorry I have to go.”

“Oh, it’s alright,” she chirps, apparently not the least bit anxious about anyone having heard whatever was going on earlier. “I hope you feel better soon!” She catches you in a quick hug before bouncing off.

Oh god.

 


	6. Peasants Sharing Drinks

You had to drive Dan home, because apparently he’d gotten picked up earlier that day. It was awkward to say the least, what with you having made an ass of yourself and not knowing what to say the entire ride back. Not to mention that situation with Bri.

Luckily Dan didn’t pry or talk much himself, only moving to turn the radio on. You heard him hum along a couple of times, and it made your gut twist.

When you got back, the two of you parted ways with a simple nod and wave.

And now you’re lying wide awake in bed.

It’s nearing on 1a.m. 

This late, your mind is often too exhausted to make sense of what you’re doing, so you text Dan.

_— You up?_

You sigh and cover your eyes with your arm, trying to force yourself to sleep. It’s not working.

_\- Yeah, what’s up?_

_— Idk. Not feeling too good._

_\- Want to pop over?_

You blink at the ceiling multiple times, your eyes stinging as they get watery. You’re tired, but you just can’t sleep. Against your better judgement, you reply.

_— If that’s okay_

_\- Sure!_

You sigh and drag yourself out of bed. You still feel terrible. Your mind has had too much alone time to think about what was going on with Bri and that guy you heard her with. Every time you think back to it you feel bile rise in your throat.

It can’t be, you think to yourself. But there aren’t many other explanations as such. God, you sure hope it isn’t, because Dan doesn’t deserve that. He deserves to be happy, whether it’s with Bri or anyone else. He shouldn’t just be cast aside as some temporary accessory. You sigh and push away the thoughts.

You can’t pinpoint why you feel guilty; you’re not the one cheating. Maybe it’s because you heard. Maybe it’s because you know you can’t tell Dan.

Either way, you end up knocking on Dan’s door with a box of a half dozen pity muffins in tow.

~~~

It was a decent night. You managed to pass off the awkwardness and just hang with Dan, watching some late night movies with the occasional condom ad that made you blush profusely. No. Good thing Dan gave you a blanket that you could snuggle into, hiding your face from him whenever you needed to.

Because luck is rarely on your side, Dan remembered to ask why you were late. He could tell you were lying when you passed the ‘fashionably late’ comment, so you were forced to tell him the truth, to which he laughed.

It was just relaxed and fun and everything you’d needed since your split with your best friend. Yes, it was long overdue, but it was the first time you didn’t feel alone since that first night you spent with him. Just friends. You can stick to that.

Maybe not.

Or at least that’s the thought running through your head the next morning when you wake up on Dan’s sofa. “Shit,” you hiss when you’re awake enough to realize where you are. Well, it’s not all that bad. At least he wasn’t on the couch with you. At least you weren’t in his bed.

You divert your mind before you can get further down that path, scolding yourself for even thinking it.

You should leave.

You force yourself out of the warmth and fold up the blanket, putting it neatly at one end of the sofa. You’ll say thank you another time; right now you feel like sneaking out is the best thing to do. There’s nothing wrong on sleeping on his couch, but it doesn’t exactly feel right either.

Just as you toe your shoes on, hand on the door handle, you hear Dan clear his throat.

And oh. Oh.  _Look up look up look up._

He’s only wearing a shirt and boxers. Nice. Nice. You better get out of there like,  _yesterday_.

“Morning,” he says, his voice a little rough from a good night’s sleep, hair pointing in every possible direction.

“I have to go,” you squeak, closing the door behind you as you leave.

~~~

“So I still don’t get why you guys were at the shops the other day,” you say to Dan, sipping on your tea. The two of you are at a local coffee shop because Dan had invited you to come and see him perform a quick solo gig. You had nothing better to do and you were more than willing to, especially since no one else was there to support him. Dan told you Bri’s busy at some charity event her parents dragged her to.

He may be a little nervous, his second drink already half empty. “Bri wanted the  _experience_ ,” Dan explains, grinning ruefully.

“Oh gosh, you’re not serious are you? Like the whole ‘what’s it like to be a peasant’ part?”

Dan laughs, looking over at the stage. He’s one of the last ones up on this open mic night and there are still few acts to go.

“Nah, I’m just joking. She does the shopping sometimes, but mostly when she wants to make something herself. Doesn’t happen often. That day she was forcing me to shop for my own place; I rarely bother to stock up.”

“Ah.”

The slight lull in the conversation prompts both of you to turn towards the stage, watching someone set up for his short set.

“What’s he like?”

Dan shrugs. “Not seen him around before. Must be a newbie.”

“So you play here often?”

“Eh. I try. I… I actually have a terrible stage fright that I’m trying to overcome… I’m starting a band and if I’m going to book some gigs I have to get over that.”

“No way!” You exclaim, looking at him with wide eyes. On top of everything, this guy is a serious musician. Serious as in he wants to get into performing beyond tiny unimportant sets at a local shop. Well that just puts the icing on your cake. “That’s amazing!”

“I don’t know if you can say that yet,” Dan mutters, smiling down at his glass. “I’m still trying to convince one guy to join and past that… I don’t even know how we’re going to sound together. We probably won’t get too far.”

The guy that was up has started playing a little, but you’re too excited to talk to Dan about his prospective career in the music business to pay attention. “Don’t talk like that! You won’t know until you try. And besides, once I see you go up there tonight I’ll let you know what I think of the potential you have, yeah?” Dan smiles sheepishly and nods, taking another sip of his drink.

It wouldn’t be the wisest to perform drunk, but Dan insists that it’s simply to give him the courage he needs to get up there; he’s a responsible drinker.

You watch Dan a little, your focus diverted only a little to the guy playing a keyboard in the background. He looks relaxed, you think. His foot is tapping against the tile relentlessly, obviously still nervous despite his liquid courage as a companion, but other than that he looks at ease. You might go so far as to say that he looks happy, what with the slight warmth to his eyes, laughter lines just showing at the corners. A sigh escapes you, and you force yourself to look away before Dan asks you what the matter is.

If only you hadn’t been so reserved a month ago.

“Uh,” Dan says, sitting up straight in his chair. All the tension that was absent a moment ago seems to have come back, Dan’s eyebrows drawn in, his mouth pulled down in a frown.

“Is everything okay?” You ask. You follow his gaze towards the stage, unable to figure out what’s wrong.

“I – yeah,” Dan replies, slouching back against the chair, his eyes not leaving the performer. You decide against prying any further and turn your gaze to the stage, watching as the guy starts to sing.

He’s not half bad, and the lyrics are quite nice, the flow adding to the melody. You wonder if it’s an original. You turn to ask Dan if he recognizes the song, but he’s not there. Wh –

You spot him just as he rushes out the door, and you immediately get up to follow him.

“Dan?” You ask, shivering a bit as the cold air hits you. His eyes are wide and frantic and he keeps tugging at his hair. “Dan, are you okay?” Is he – is he really that nervous?

You place a hand on his arm, hoping to lend him some comfort, but when he looks up at you it’s like a blow to the gut. He looks terrified, hurt, and angry all at once.

“Hey,” you whisper, stepping a bit closer to him. “It’s alright, talk to me.”

His mouth opens and shuts a couple of times, until finally he speaks.

“That’s my song.”

 


	7. "That's My Song."

“What?”

“That’s my song!” Dan insists. He begins pacing back and forth, a panic set in his eyes.

“Dan, hang on a second.” You grab his wrist as he walks past you again. “Dan. Listen to me. Breathe.”

“I – I can’t.” Dan’s voice breaks.

“You… Are you serious? That’s your song?”

“ _Yes_ , please you have to believe me! I can even recite the lyrics and tell you exactly how the entire song goes,  _please_ ,” he begs, eyes flitting frantically across your face for any sign of support.

“I believe you,” you assure, “Of course I believe you, but… How?”

“I don’t know!” Dan cries, slipping his arm out of your grip and walking a few metres off before leaning dejectedly against a wall. You bite your lip and go up to him, just close enough to hear him sniff before he pushes himself off the wall.

“I have to get my keyboard from inside,” Dan mutters, heading back towards the shop. You call after him, but he doesn’t stop.

Following him back into the shop, you pause by the door to listen to the song again. How is that even  _possible_?

You spot Dan walking over to the men’s room and groan inwardly, deciding you’ll have to wait outside for him to come out.

About ten minutes later when he hasn’t emerged, you make a strangled noise and walk inside. Thankfully there aren’t any other guys there.

Dan’s standing in front of the mirror, both hands on either side of the sink with his head dropped down between his shoulders.

“Dan?”

He snaps his head up before turning away. “Why are you in here?”

“Because you’ve been in here for ten minutes and I’ve been waiting for you to come out. Come on,” you say, wrapping an arm around his shoulders. “We’re going home.”

“My keyboard,” Dan protests.

“We’ll get it tomorrow,” you suggest, but Dan just shrugs off your arm and mumbles that he’ll get it and then you two can head back. You sigh for lack of anything better to do, trailing behind him as he goes towards the side of the makeshift stage, not once looking up at the performer. You, however, take to glaring at the guy for as long as you possibly can before leaving the joint.

Dan doesn’t talk the whole way back to the apartment building. His grip on the steering wheel is tight, white knuckles giving away what his stoic expression holds back.

Even when the two of you take the elevator up and go to part ways, Dan just mumbles a quick bye.

“You want me to come over?” You ask, but Dan only waves a hand dismissively.

You head back to your own apartment, an unsettled feeling at the pit of your stomach.

Things just keep getting better and better.

~~~

You shoot up when you hear someone knocking at your door, hoping that Dan has finally gotten over his moping long enough to pay you a visit.

“Morning love. You know Dan, yeah?” You’re standing face to… well chest, because you’re short and he’s significantly taller, with some guy that has an amusing arrangement of facial hair.

“Uh, yeah, but,” you start, but before you can ask who he is, the guy just straight up walks into your apartment.

“Nice place…” he mumbles. He sniffs the air a little and you groan, knowing that the kitchen is close enough for the smell to be detected from where he’s standing. “Muffins,” he states simply. “Can I have one?”

You stare at him incredulously. “Maybe, if you tell me who you are first.”

“Ah, of course!” He says, turning around on the ball of his foot and sticking out his hand to greet you. “I’m Kyle.”

“… Is that supposed to mean something?”

Kyle frowns, taking his hand back when you don’t shake it. “Dan doesn’t talk about me?”

“I… Am I supposed to know who you are, Kyle?”

“I’m Dan’s friend! Also one of his bandmates. Or, well, I haven’t told him that I’ve accepted his multitudinous pleading yet, but.”

You blink at him, standing by the door that’s still wide open. If you’re honest, he’s welcome to walk right back out.

“When was the last time you saw Dan?” Kyle asks.

“Last night.”

“Is he alive?”

“Are you serious?”

“Dead,” he says, his serious front cracked a little by his unintentional pun.

“Yeah.”

“Then why isn’t he opening his door?”

“Why do you know where I live?” You retaliate. “How do you know who I am for that matter?”

Kyle rolls his eyes and heads over to a stool at the breakfast bar, forcing you to shut the door and sit on the stool next to him. You kind of regret not buying a third one; you could really use it to distance you from Kyle right now. It’s all a little weird.

“Dan had his open mic last night, yeah? None of us could come and he prefers we don’t just yet anyway, but he said you were joining him. And I have my ways of finding things out.”

“Uh.”

“Anyway,” Kyle says, waving his hand dismissively. “Why is Dan not opening the door or anything?”

“I don’t know,” you say. You  _do_  know, but it… “Maybe he’s still asleep?”

Kyle shakes his head and reaches over to the counter, grabbing a bowl of grapes. “These washed?” He asks, and you nod, though you’re not too keen on his forwardness. You’ll have to tell Dan to keep his friends out of your place.

“Dan doesn’t sleep past ten most days; noon is his peak writing hour.”

“Well maybe today isn’t most days,” you say. You can’t imagine him making use of the peak hour after last night. You’re half worried that he’ll make some stupidly drastic decision to never write ever again.

“Still doesn’t make sense if you ask me. What happened last night?”

“He um,” you start, not wanting to say it. You remember his broken expression.

“Oh God,” Kyle says, his hand freezing over the bowl of grapes. He looks at you with wide eyes and leans forward a bit before whispering lowly, “He didn’t… He didn’t make a move on you did he?”

The sadistic part of your brain pipes in with  _unfortunately not_ , though you shut it up quickly. You really, really need to stop that side of your brain from working. Dan’s a great friend and you wouldn’t want to compromise that for anything.

“You’re hesitating,” Kyle notices, a horrified expression coming over him.

“No!” You intervene. “No, God no. Dan’s not like that. Not at all, just… Last night there was a guy who went up a few acts before him and… I don’t know how, but he was playing Dan’s song.”

“You’re joking.”

You shake your head and stare at Kyle’s hand, trying not to think about the desperation in Dan’s eyes when he’d insisted it was his.

“And he didn’t know him, yeah?”

“Don’t think so.”

“Which one?”

“I don’t know,” you mumble into your hand.

“And you’re sure it was his?”

“He said it was his and freaked out; I’m sure. We just left right after and came back here. He didn’t want to talk about it.”

Kyle sucks in a deep breath, breathing out a whispered, “Shit.”

Yeah. You sit still, peeling off the dry skin on your lips nervously. Honestly, as much as you wanted to make yourself believe you could ignore it, you’ve been thinking on it all day and hoping he’s okay.

“C’mon,” Kyle says, grabbing your forearm and dragging you behind him.

“Wait where are we going?”

“Dan’s.”

“But he won’t open the door!”

“For me, maybe,” Kyle mumbles. What does  _that_  mean?

You sigh in defeat and lock up, following along to Dan’s door. You hesitate to knock, listening closely for any sounds of… well. Dan.

“That’s it,” you whisper. “The song.”

Kyle furrows his eyebrows and presses himself against the door to listen, his eyes widening as recognition kicks in.

“Oh god, he’s got to be fucked up,” Kyle whispers, pulling away.

“Why do you say that?”

“It’s… This song, Haunt, it’s one he’s been working on it forever. Means a lot to him.”

Your eyes flicker towards the door. You flinch when you hear a chord go horribly off, then the music stops altogether. There are a few moments of heavy silence, then you hear what sounds like an ugly smash at random keys followed by a thud.

“Kyle?” You say worriedly, voice smaller than you’d want it to be. He fiddles with a ring on his thumb and waits a little longer before nodding at you.

“Who is it?” You hear Dan call, not all that friendly.

“It’s – it’s me,” you reply, hoping he’ll recognize your voice.

After a couple minutes of no one opening the door, you turn to Kyle, ready to leave.

“He’s not going to - ”

“You brought Kyle with you,” Dan states coldly. He looks like a mess. His hair’s all over the place and the state of his eyes suggest he hasn’t slept all night. You feel a pang of pain.

“I did,” you reply, for lack of anything better to say. You see Dan’s resolve deflate before he steps aside to let you both in.

You head over to the couch, Dan sitting on the opposite end while Kyle takes the chair nearby.

“So what is this, an intervention?” Dan says, voice void of emotion. It’s probably the first time he hasn’t sounded somewhat animated in his speech, no goofy smile to go with it. You hate it.

Kyle’s looking at you expectantly, hoping for you to say something, but honestly what can you say? It’s shitty? Yeah, everyone knows that. You’re sorry? It’s a bit redundant. You shrug helplessly at Kyle.

“I – I’ve decided to take you up on your offer,” Kyle says cautiously. “I’ll join the band.”

Dan laughs bitterly, and you notice Kyle flinch when Dan stands up abruptly. “What fucking good is it now? People will just take my shit and make it sound better than I ever could.”

“Dan - ”

“Kyle, there’s no use in trying to convince me of anything right now.”

“Really?” You pipe in, partly to come to Kyle’s defence. “You’re just going to give up because some asshole somehow got your music?”

“Yes!” Dan exclaims, rubbing both hands over his face. “Yes, okay? Is that what you want? Some finality? Then I’m giving up, alright?”

“No you’re not,” Kyle protests, standing up in front of Dan, hands balling into fists. You’re suddenly very,  _very_  nervous of what might occur. You don’t know how either of these boys handles conflict.

“Dan… Can we just…” you stutter, not knowing how to take control of the situation. “Sit down, okay?”

Dan looks at you, a slight flash of anger in his eyes before they’re overcome with resignation again. You let out a small sigh of relief as both of them take their seats again.

“Dan, you can’t just give up, okay?” You say gently. He won’t look at you, so you move closer and place a hand on his knee. You miss the way he looks when he’s happy and relaxed. Hurt Dan looks like a kicked puppy.

“What else do I do?”

“You – you have to move on. That song, whether you make it your own again… That’s your choice. That guy’s just some nobody; no one will hear it and strip your name from it.”

“You don’t know that.”

“Yeah, I don’t. You don’t know whether I’m right or wrong; no one does. You have to keep going, because if you don’t… You won’t do what makes you happy. You ought to be happy, Dan.”

You glance over to Kyle who’s watching you talk intently. “Kyle’s in on this. Your other bandmates are. They’re willing to take the risk for you, Dan. If nothing more, respect them enough to give it a shot.”

“But those words aren’t mine anymore,” he whispers.

And you know what? That’s just  _ridiculous_. You say it, too. “That’s stupid. They’re still yours; it’s still your hard work that went into that. Just because someone stole your music - ”

“But what if I play it and then he claims it’s his or something?”

“Oh come  _on_ ,” you complain, slightly sick of Dan’s wallowing. “You can’t believe that would actually happen. Dan, you – you have to leave this behind.”

“And if it happens again?”

You sigh and look at Kyle again, who simply prompts you to continue. You’d mock him for his lame attempts to help you out if it weren’t for the seriousness of it all. Honestly, you can’t imagine how devastated Dan feels. You want to make it go away.

“Then Kyle and I will find him and we will make him wish he never even  _tried_. Understood?”

Dan goes quiet, and for a few minutes nothing is said.

“You’re never going to change, are you?” Kyle mumbles. “Just wallowing in your misery.”

“Kyle,” you start, but you already see the tension come back to Dan’s features.

“Fuck off,” he spits.

“Fine,” Kyle says, standing up and heading to the door. Before he walks out, he turns around and adds, “But you should realize what you’ve got. Maybe understand that not everyone in the world is out to get you. I don’t know why she even bothers.” He glances at you before slamming the door on his way out.

“Fuck him,” Dan mumbles.

You chew on your lower lip anxiously. What are you supposed to do now?

“He doesn’t mean it,” you say. “He’s your friend. We both are. We just want you to be alright, and if that means getting you out of this, then… He’s not going to be kind about it.”

Even you’re not certain about your words, mainly because you don’t know Kyle all that well, but it’s all you can come up with.

“We’re here for you, Dan,” you remind him. “But you need to move past this.”

When Dan doesn’t respond, you sigh and get up.

“My door’s always open for you.”

Half of you is disappointed when he doesn’t say anything before you leave, but the other half hadn’t expected anything. He’ll come around. Right?


	8. Blame

It wasn’t easy getting Dan to agree to this get together. When you knocked on the door and said, “it’s me,” you (again) didn’t mention that Kyle was with you. Dan, needless to say, was not thrilled when Kyle pushed past him.

“I’m not going to open the door for you anymore if you keep bringing him over,” Dan mumbled, stepping aside to let you in. Kyle talked to Dan as if he’d never spoken harshly to him the other day. After the initial tensions subsided, the edge in Dan’s voice disappeared, and it was as if they were back to normal.

“We are  _not_  having a party,” Dan said.

“No, no, not a party,” Kyle insisted, bouncing up and down on the couch a little. “Just a get together. Us lot, her, and Bri for you, yeah?”

“I don’t know…”

“C’mon, you need cheering up. Just this one thing, and if it doesn’t work you can kick me out of the band, alright?”

Despite the weight the topic still held, Dan let out a breathy laugh and shrugged. “Fine, I guess. Can’t be too loud or big though, you know that. These neighbours have never been that friendly.” Kyle wrinkled his nose at that, and after Dan reminded him one more time before both of you left, he ensured Dan he’d take care of it.

So here you are, sitting at Dan’s breakfast bar popping a slice of orange in your mouth. Right now, none of the guys have shown up, and it’s only you, Dan, and Bri. You’re not too keen on being in the flat with them, and to be honest you’d insisted on going back to your place until the rest of Dan’s band showed up, but Dan promised they weren’t too far off.

You hear a little squeak followed by a giggle and turn to see Dan carrying Bri on his back, both of them grinning madly. “Hi,” he says, and you wave with a forced smile. Bri jumps off his back and straightens up her clothes a little, patting down her hair. “No one’s here yet, huh?”

“Guess not,” you reply, turning back to your orange. You hear Dan mutter something inaudible which makes Bri giggle and you want to get out of there. You feel so uncomfortable knowing what you know (which may or may not be true, you’ve yet to decide), just sitting there and letting Dan get used.

Thankfully you only have to deal with it for a minute longer.

“We have arrived!” Kyle announces when Dan opens the door for him. His arms are full of bags that he drops carelessly on the counter, coming around to give you a quick friendly hug. The two of you have gotten quite well acquainted in the alone time you shared between your Dan ambushes.

“Hello, love. This,” he says, pointing towards one of his friends, “is Woody. He’s our drummer.”

“Assuming we still have a band,” you hear Dan mumble, but Bri quickly quiets him down.

“And lest you mistake this handsome man for a model, let me introduce you to our bassist, Will.”

You duck your head and smile at both of the new guys, hoping that you won’t somehow forget their names as the night goes on. They all look band material, you think to yourself, though you’re not sure what you mean by that.

“Movie time,” Kyle says, clapping his hands together. He picks up the bags again and plops them on the floor beside the sofa, demanding that everyone join him. Despite everyone’s reluctance, eventually the whole group is crowded in the small area waiting for Kyle to put some movie on.

“Home Alone?” He asks, and no one refuses, so he looks through Dan’s stack of DVDs, quickly finding the appropriate one and putting it in before squeezing in next to you on the sofa, forcing you to shuffle closer to Will. You mutter an apology, hoping you can hold down your slight blush.

Kyle passes around all the snacks, crisps, sweets, and chocolates as the movie progresses. Despite it being somewhat enjoyable, everyone seems a bit awkward and hesitant. It gets more obvious the longer you watch the film, what with no one even trying to laugh at the funny parts.

“Where are the drinks?” Woody asks, and Kyle points towards the counter where he’d left one bag. “Right, we all need some,” he mutters, getting up to fetch them.

So thanks to Woody, everyone’s beginning to loosen up a little. Kyle… He’s a special case, giggling at the serious part where Kevin goes to the church and gets an inspirational talk. It’s more than a little endearing.

You try to pretend like you don’t notice Dan and Bri getting touchy on the loveseat, but it’s really hard for anyone to ignore it when they get up and head towards Dan’s bedroom. Well.

“Honestly,” Kyle mumbles, rolling his head over to look at you. “Is anyone paying attention to the film?”

“Not if you keep talking over it,” Will retorts, making Kyle frown.

“No, seriously though. I’m pretty sure this is one of those movies where any given person could recite the entire script as it goes along. Not all that much fun as it should be.”

“What do you suggest we do then?” Woody asks, taking a swig from his bottle.

Kyle’s eyebrows furrow together, and his eyes widen when he gets an idea.

“I swear if you suggest spin the bottle I will stick a Christmas tree up your arse,” Woody deadpans.

“Aw come on!” Kyle pouts vigorously, and you have to look away to keep from laughing. “You’re such a spoilsport!”

“Yeah, well. You can play, but I ain’t risking it again; last time we played you guys told Chrissy and she got in a right mood with me for a whole week!”

“We won’t tell!” Kyle insists, but Woody just rolls his eyes, sinking back further into the sofa.

“Sure, just like you said last time. If there’s a two out of three chance that I have to kiss one of you guys, I’m out. And a one out of three chance that I have to deal with Dan’s pissy self if it lands otherwise… Not this time.”

You frown a little, but before you can ask what it means, Kyle’s pulling you down onto the floor. You’re a little too tipsy to give a shit, despite not having drunk much. It’s just a dumb game. For teenagers, you think, but it’s fine.

“Will, come on,” he calls, and Will grudgingly joins you two. It’s going to be a pretty terrible game.

“Spin once to see who starts?” Kyle asks, shrugging when no one responds.

You grimace when the bottle lands on you. “Alright, fine,” you mumble, reaching forward and spinning it. You all share an awkward laugh when it points to the open gap between your makeshift circle.

Your second spin lands on Kyle.

“Oh,” Kyle mutters.

You shrug and lean forward, Kyle meeting you halfway. At first, it’s tense and awkward, the two of you having no experience with one another. His beard tickles a little, but you get used to it when Kyle brings a hand up behind your neck, the slight peck becoming something more. Sober, you probably wouldn’t have considered Kyle, but right now you’re beginning to think on it. His tongue swipes against your lips and you gasp a little, letting Kyle deepen the kiss.

You hear Will or Woody clear his throat, but you choose to carry on until,

“What’s going on in here?”

You and Kyle spring apart suddenly, Dan’s loud voice breaking into the kiss. Kyle hugs his knees into his chest, a blush rising on his cheeks. “Nothing,” he mumbles.

You glance challengingly at Dan, who holds your gaze for a second before laughing a little, seating himself on the couch. “Right.”

Will gets back on the sofa, but you stay with Kyle, your back leaning against it. You nudge him while he’s twiddling his thumbs and give him a warm smile. “S’okay,” you say, but all you get is a little grumble in response. He doesn’t take it too lightly when you laugh at his nervous state.

“I have to pee,” you say, getting up. The guys look at you oddly, as if trying to figure out how that’s a normal announcement to make in front of three guys.

“Down the hallway,” Dan provides.

Turns out that tip wasn’t too handy; there are three doors in the hallway and all of them are shut. You try your luck on the first one, but it’s just a storage closet.

You open the next door and quickly note it to be Dan’s bedroom. You’re about to shut the door when you hear a whispered, “Aha!”

Against your better judgement, you peek inside.

Bri’s standing by Dan’s desk, a few sheets of paper in her hands. What?

A wave of sobriety hits you, and all of the pieces begin to fall in place. Oh no. Oh  _God_  no.

For a moment you’re frozen to the spot with disbelief, but something forces you to intrude. How _dare_  she?

You’re still not sure if what conclusion you’re jumping to is right, but the numbed side of your brain propels you forward. You march into the room and grab Bri’s wrist, staring her dead in the eye.

“If these are what I think they are, you better put them right back where they came from,” you warn.

Bri narrows her eyes at you, but just as she opens her mouth Dan opens the door.

Both of you look at him, watching his eyes flit between the papers and the two of you.

“Wh… What’s going on?” Dan asks, his voice extremely cautious.

“I told you you shouldn’t trust her!” Bri exclaims, yanking her wrist from your hand and rubbing at her skin. “She’s the one that stole your music and gave it to that guy, and she was about to do it again! You’re lucky I caught her. God, Dan, I’m so sorry you trust people too easily when people like  _her_  take advantage of you.”

Your heart drops into your stomach. No. No, this can’t be happening.

Oh, she’s good.

You can’t even make yourself say anything, staring in total disbelief. Dan can’t believe her, can he? The whole thing is so farfetched… You would never. If Dan even suspects you…

“It all started when  _she_  - ”

“Stop,” Dan says, his voice scarily quiet. You glance behind him, only just noticing the guys peering into the room.

The silence buries you up to your neck, and you’re sure you’re going to drown in it when Dan mutters, “Leave. Everyone. Out.”

You watch the guys walk away and hear them clearing up before leaving.

“Now. I mean it.”

You swallow and walk towards the door, towards Dan.

“Dan,” you start, but he just makes a strangled noise and steps aside to clear your path.

“Go,” he whispers. He won’t look you in the eye. His gaze is fixed on the carpet, worry lines showing on his face. You do as you’re told and pick up your stuff on the way out.

Some part of you takes sick pleasure in hearing Dan cast Bri out as well, despite her attempts to coo and kiss up to Dan.

And now the blame’s on you. Great.


	9. The Truth Bites

You haven’t been over or even tried to talk to Dan in days. You’re annoyed that he doesn’t trust you, that he might suspect you of stealing his music.

Some rational part of your mind knows that’s ridiculous; Dan doesn’t know you all that well despite the time you’ve spent together. He has no reason to trust you enough that he wouldn’t have at least a smidgen of doubt. And like Bri said, it all began when you and Dan got closer.

But rationality was never your strength. You’ve been sat around your apartment brooding for days, insisting to yourself that Dan’s a shitty friend for not trusting you. You’re not about to start thinking straight now.

Besides, Kyle’s been a good enough friend to pop around every now and then, even if it’s just for ten minutes to see how you’re doing. Dan’s not bothered once.

You sigh and try to clear your head of thoughts, turning over in bed before forcing yourself into sleep.

~~~

It’s Christmas. Well that’s just great, because you’re spending it alone. For the first time in forever, Christmas is going to suck. You don’t have your family because you decided to move away and you’re barely getting enough funding to go to uni. They never fly down because all your cousins are back home and they always have a giant get together that they can’t abandon. Usually you fly back, but this year’s been especially tough on you.

And friends? Sure. Because you have those.

It’s not like you got Dan a gift or anything. Because you didn’t. You don’t have anything tucked in the back of your closet.

You shower and slip into some clean PJs (because they’re way comfier than normal clothes anyway), settling down on the sofa. You’ve been alone for a while now; one more day can’t hurt.

Your thoughts begin battling back and forth a little, and you feel the impending stress that’s going to settle on your shoulders when you hear a knock on your door.

It’s Kyle. And Will, and Woody.

“Uh. Hello?”

Kyle doesn’t smile at you like normal. They all look serious, and when they push past you to get inside, you immediately know what’s going on.

“Oh god, this is an intervention, isn’t it?” You speculate, claiming your seat on the sofa again. You pull your knees up to your chest. “Seriously?” you ask incredulously, looking back and forth between them. “No Merry Christmas? Nothing?”

Kyle looks at you uncomfortably and shifts in his seat. “Look,” he starts, “we… We’re pretty sure of our gut feeling, but we have to ask to be sure.”

“You think I did it.”

“No,” he assures, waving his hands out in front of him. “Actually, we think you’re innocent. We all have our… misgivings about Bri. But we want your honest confirmation.”

You blink. “I’m not a shitty person,” you say. “I may have my faults, but I am not so fucked up that I would try and hurt my friends like that.” You could stop there, because the guys seem to ease up enough that you figure they believe you, but you don’t. “I  _care_  about Dan. I care about his happiness and his music and his band, so why would I dare screw that up for him?”

Will and Kyle both watch you calculatingly, Woody resting his chin on his hands.

“So,” Woody begins, “Dan… He’s not been in a good place, as you could imagine.”

“Yeah? And? That’s not my fault, is it?” You retort, a little more bitterly than you meant to.

Woody sighs and looks to Kyle, who shrugs helplessly. “He doesn’t know that.”

“Well maybe he should,” you bite.

“Yeah, well maybe it’s difficult for Dan.”

Woody’s voice is a little louder, a little more aggravated.

You should understand. You  _do_ understand. But there’s still that selfish part of you that’s upset that Dan doesn’t trust you.

“What Woody’s trying to say,” Will intervenes, leaning forward on his elbows, “is that Dan… He’s a passionate person. He loves Bri and he doesn’t want to believe it was her that did it because she’s his girlfriend, and if he suspected her, it would mean he doubted her loyalty. In the case that she was innocent, it would make Dan look like he doesn’t trust his girlfriend of all people, and he would look like a terrible person. On the other hand, he doesn’t want to blame you either, because he… He wants to trust you too. He does, really, but it’s his girlfriend and he thinks that takes precedence. He wants to give her the benefit of the doubt, you know?”

No, you didn’t know. Well you did, because part of you knew that Dan would be that type of person, but your petty anger didn’t let you consider it long enough to understand him the way Will’s saying he is. And to be honest, that same pettiness is what makes you stand up and walk away from the living room.

You don’t expect anyone to follow you into your room, so you’re a little off guard when you hear Woody deadpan, “You’re being a douche.”

“Excuse me?”

“You heard me. If you really did care, and if you really didn’t do it, you’d go over there and tell it to his face. You’d talk this through with Dan. Not to clear your name, but to quell his stupid doubts. You wouldn’t let him beat himself up for trusting you.”

With that, Woody leaves your flat, shortly followed by Will and Kyle.

~~~

You tip the remainder of your drink into your mouth and press your fingers to your temple, hard.

Even if you wanted to talk to Dan, what could you say to make him believe you? It could have been you or Bri. Will’s right; he’s not going to want to doubt his girlfriend, even if it means you get the short straw. So what then, are you going to trash the person he loves? God no, he’d hate you for that.

You look up to the stage of the tiny coffee shop, your eyes narrowing as you see a familiar body on stage. You pull on your jacket and make your way to the door.

Why did you think it was a good idea to come back to this place after it’s the reason this mess came about? You leave the dark corner you were sitting in and weave between the tables. You won’t spend the last hours of your shitty Christmas listening to this asshole.

You hear a familiar sickening giggle and turn just in time to see Bri cozying up to whoever she decided to cheat on Dan with as the guy comes off stage. She goes on her tiptoes and kisses the guy smack on the lips, no reservations, despite being in a public place.

Your mind flashes back to the night of the party when you got your first clue that something was up. You turn your back to them, and just as your hand lands on the door handle, you hear the guy say something back to Bri.

Same voice. Same guy.

A ball of anger burns in the pit of your stomach and your shove the door open with more force than is necessary, hoping it slams shut for everyone to notice.

~~~

“Kyle?” you say into the phone. You weren’t sure what else to do.

“ _Is everything alright_?”

“Yeah, just. No, actually.”

“ _It’s not Dan is it? Did you talk to him yet_?”

“No, not yet. Can you come over?”

“ _Course. Give me ten minutes, alright love_?”

“Yeah.”

You exhale when you hang up, curling up into a ball on the couch. What the fuck is going on with your life?

~~~

“I mean, I already kind of knew, but this just confirmed my suspicions,” you say frantically, wide eyes fixed on your fingers that are at work on the loose threads of your old hoodie.

“You knew?” Kyle asks, fingers reaching over to fiddle with your worn out attire as well.

“I… She had this birthday party and I heard someone that sounded like her with some other guy on my way out and I hid when the guy left but came out just in time to bump into her. She looked like she’d been pretty busy.”

“Do you know who it is?”

“No,” you breathe. “Same guy as the one that sang Dan’s song, that’s the most I know.”

Kyle’s fingers brush against yours a couple of times, and it feels good to know you’re not alone.

“So what we’re – what we’re really saying here is that she’s been cheating on Dan for a while now and she’s been stealing Dan’s music to give to this guy, yeah?”

You shrug. “Seems like it.”

“Shit,” Kyle murmurs.

“Yup.”

“So what are you going to do?”

You drop your head onto Kyle’s shoulder and breathe for a while. “I don’t know. I guess I should go and talk to him, right?” Kyle hums in agreement. “I have some semblance of a peace offering,” you add, “what with it being Christmas and all. I didn’t know if I’d end up giving it to him at this rate.”

“Would be nice if you did,” Kyle comments.

You snap your fingers and shoot up off the couch. “Be right back,” you call. You head to your room and dig through your closet, pulling out two packages. You take the one marked with Kyle’s name back out and hand it to him. “Merry Christmas,” you say with a bright smile.

“B-but I didn’t get you anything,” Kyle stammers, turning the box around in his hands.

“It’s okay,” you say, sitting back on the sofa beside him. “Open it!”

You watch his fingers peel the wrapping paper back, then open a cardboard box.

“A snow globe?” he asks, feeling the weight through the bubble wrap. You prompt him to open it, so he does.

Indeed, it is a snow globe, but instead of the typical Frosty the Snowman or whatever generic character goes in one of these things, there’s a cat. You watch a grin spread across Kyle’s face as he sets it down beside him, pulling you into a hug.

“Thank you.”

When he pulls back his face is closer than it ought to be, his eyes still alight with amusement even as his smile fades. Your stomach twists a little when Kyle rests his forehead against yours, soft breaths grazing your skin.

You don’t make the first move. You still haven’t discussed the one drunken kiss you two shared, and you’re not exactly sure where you stand. You don’t want to be the one to read things the wrong way.

Apparently, Kyle is opposed to doing anything either, the two of you simply staring for a few moments.

You’re about to say something to attempt to break the tension when Kyle purses his lips, pulling away with his shoulders shaking. To date, you have never seen a grown man giggle the way Kyle is giggling right now. It’s quite contagious.

“What are we doing?” you ask between laughs.

“I don’t know,” Kyle replies, shaking his head and curbing his laughter.

You drop your head onto his shoulder and smile a little.

“Friends, yeah?” Kyle asks.

“Mhm,” you agree.

“I mean you’re wonderful,” Kyle says, “beautiful too, but-”

“We’re better off as friends,” you finish.

“Yeah. Besides, I know someone who would be more interested,” Kyle mumbles.

“Oh yeah? Who’s that?”

Kyle zips his lips shut and grins smugly.

“Fine. But I will get it out of you.”


	10. Relief

Dan sighs and slams his palm on the side of the doorframe. “Fucking Trojan horse shit,” he mumbles, turning on his heel and letting Kyle in with you trailing cautiously behind. 

“Sorry,” Kyle says, though he doesn’t sound apologetic in the least. Yeah you pulled that one on him again, only this time Kyle knocked and you stood aside waiting to sneak attack an unsuspecting Dan. You feel kind of bad for it, but it must be done. Besides, Kyle isn’t letting you out of this one. He had you by the door for twenty minutes trying to get you to stay and not lock yourself back up in your own flat. 

“What is it this time?” Dan asks. He turns on the TV and flicks between channels, trying to feign ignorance so that you two get annoyed enough to leave. You’ve used that trick before. Doesn’t work. Kyle just gets up and snatches the remote, turning it off. 

“Right,” Kyle announces. “Dan, we have to talk.” 

~~~

Dan doesn’t say anything the whole time. He listens with a blank look on his face, staring at the carpet. He only flinches very slightly when Kyle mentions the other guy the first time. After that, he maintains pretty expressionless. 

“Thank you,” Dan mutters. “If you would be so kind as to leave now.”

Kyle’s jaw drops and he stares at Dan for a moment. “Fine,” he sighs. He stands up and gestures for you to follow. 

You didn’t say much. You let Kyle speak for you. You kind of wish you’d stood your ground, and you’re half sure Kyle’s going to complain because you didn’t, but he seems too exhausted to even bother. 

It’s not unexpected for Kyle to come back to your apartment, but you thought he might want to go back home or something. 

“Isn’t it kind of late now?”

Kyle shrugs, going to your fridge and pouring himself a glass of juice. He offers you some, but you refuse.

“You seem kind of off,” Kyle notes, watching you closely as he takes a sip.   
“I do?”

He nods and heads over to the couch, patting the spot beside him for you. “Is everything alright?”

You furrow your eyebrows. “Besides the whole Dan drama? I guess so.” 

“Talk to me,” Kyle says.

“What?” 

“Talk to me. Even earlier you seemed stressed, and… I don’t know I feel like there’s something on your mind besides all this. Correct me if I’m wrong, but.”  
You sigh and run a hand through your hair. Looks like someone caught you out. How, you’re not sure. Back when you had your best friend you could go weeks hiding things from her, things that upset you, and she wouldn’t notice. 

“Uhm. You sure?” 

“Absolutely.”

“I – Well for one it’s Christmas and I’m not home with my family. I couldn’t make it back home this year. I’ve been without a job recently and I really need to find a new one. I’m not sure where I’m going with my life and with my degree and whatnot, and that’s stupid because it should be my last year, but I haven’t looking into any student teacher programs and… Over a month ago I had an argument with my best friend and long story short, we’re not best friends anymore. And yesterday she called me. She wanted to talk things out and… I don’t know. I’m just such a mess,” you say, your words spilling form your mouth. You should stop; Kyle probably doesn’t want to hear so much.  

Before you can curb your rambling, Kyle cuts you off, pulling you into a hug. “It’s alright, yeah?” he says simply. You let out a deep sigh and shut your eyes, nodding against him. “You just need a good long hug. You’ll be alright.”

True to his word, Kyle shifts about so you can get comfy and lets you cuddle with him for a while. It’s surprisingly relaxing. All it is is just being wrapped up in someone else and feeling a little less alone, listening to each other’s breaths. You’re glad the two of you established your boundaries, because you’re the type of person that would overthink in this situation, but at least now you know it’s just platonic and that’s perfect. 

After a few minutes, Kyle says with a smile, “Maybe I’ll be your new best friend, yeah?”

To be honest, nothing sounds better than that right now.   
~~~  
You were kind of worried Dan wouldn’t open the door for you the next day, but he was there in less than a minute, gesturing for you to come in. 

“Uh,” you start, scuffing your toes against the tiles. He tilts his head to the side a little, prompting you to go on. “I… I got you a gift. For Christmas. But obviously I didn’t give it to you yesterday.”

“Oh,” Dan says, blinking a few times. You force a smile and hand the wrapped present to him, chewing on your lower lip. “You really didn’t have to.”

“I wanted to,” you say quickly. “I’d planned on it for a while now. So. Here.” 

“Well… Thank you,” Dan smiles, taking the gift from you. He moves to the breakfast bar and unwraps it painfully slowly, trying to keep the gift-wrap intact. Inside is a deluxe box set of Twin Peaks. 

Dan’s eyes widen and he looks up at you suddenly. “How did you know?” 

“What, you mean outside of the fact that you have Twin Peaks stuff strewn across your flat, all apart from a full DVD set? I might have asked Kyle a while back.”

Dan looks back down at the box in his hands. He takes a moment to turn it over in his hands, but finally sets it aside. When he stands back in front of you he’s looking at you strangely. 

You’re about to say something, but you’re cut off when Dan steps forward and wraps his arms around you. For a second you forget to breathe, but your confusion and anxiety give way to relief, and soon you return the embrace. As shitty as you felt about it all, you can’t deny you’ve missed Dan.

He steps back and runs a hand through his hair, looking a little stressed. If you’re completely honest, it looks like he hasn’t slept at all the past few nights.  

“I’m sorry I’ve been such a shitty friend,” Dan mutters. After the words leave his mouth, his eyes immediately drop from yours. 

“It’s alright,” you say, even though it really wasn’t. “I mean, you love her right? Who can blame you?” 

Dan winces a little, mumbling something below his breath. 

“Hmm?” 

“Loved,” Dan repeats. 

You tilt your head a little, trying to get a better look at him. “Is everything alright?”

“She uh,” Dan says weakly. He clears his throat before finishing, “She broke up with me.”

Wait… What?

“You mean you broke up with her?” You ask. 

You see him swallow before replying, “Not really… I didn’t… I didn’t really bring… it up.”

Your hand twitches beside you, and you feel something primal rising in you. “Are you serious?” You say, probably with a bit more venom than you should have, because Dan flinches. You sigh and rub your arms a little. “Sorry. Yeah, yeah, okay. But she can’t just… she can’t get away with that.” 

Dan lifts his head a little to look at you. “What does that mean?” 

“I don’t know yet,” you mutter, mind already whirring with possibilities. “But I’ll let you know as soon as I find out.” 

~~~

You hung out with Dan some more after that. Albeit it was still a little awkward, what with Dan trying to cover up his misery with forced laughter, but you’re pretty hopeful for where you and Dan are taking your friendship again. 

The rest of the night you end up texting Kyle, who decides to call you half way through so you can carry a proper conversation. It’s interesting to say the least, and you find yourself grinning and feeling guilty at the same time. 

About an hour later, you call Dan, who picks up with a sleepy, “’Lo?” 

“Dan? Sorry for waking you up, but I talked to Kyle and we have a plan.” 


	11. Sweet, Sweet Revenge

You fold your hands in front of you to keep from fidgeting, watching Dan sip his drink. He puts it down and smiles awkwardly at you.

“So,” he says, “Having fun?”

You make yourself look away when he makes eye contact. Don’t need the trouble of getting lost in that vortex right now. “Sure,” you respond.

The two of you are sitting at a booth at some restaurant, trying to act as normal as you can. This isn’t a date, yet somehow you seem to forget that, if the fluttery feeling in your stomach is any indication.

“Kyle’s late, isn’t he?” You mutter.

Dan shrugs. “I wasn’t in on this plan. I wasn’t even sure he was meant to show up at all.”

You sigh and lean back against the bench, tipping your head back with a slight groan. When will this start?

It’s a few minutes before a squeak from Dan prompts you to open your eyes and look around.

“ _That’s_  the plan?” Dan asks. You follow his gaze to where Bri and That Bastard (as you’ve so valiantly dubbed him) are seated at a table on the other side of the room. It’s fairly busy tonight and there’s enough people for them not to notice you, but the path of vision to see the two making heart eyes at each other is clear.

You look back at Dan, who went from being nervous and a little excited to having his head turned to the wall, burning a hole into one spot of the wallpaper with his gaze. He doesn’t look happy at all.

“Dan?” you say. He doesn’t respond, so you place a hand on his arm. He turns to you with wide eyes.

“Hmm?”

“Are you alright?”

Without replying, Dan takes a glance across the restaurant just in time to catch Bri moving to sit beside That Bastard to have a not-so-discreet display of affection. Only that’s not your focus. You focus is the way Dan’s eyes seem to go duller, the hunch in his shoulders as he folds into himself, wishing that he would just disappear.

“Hey,” you whisper. He doesn’t look at you, so you figure you’ve got to kick it up a notch. You take one of his hands in both of yours, which catches his attention. “You’re good. You shouldn’t be sad about this, Dan. You had a week or more of trying to figure it out and to clear your head. You – she treated you like shit, Dan. Yeah, you don’t deserve that and that part of it’s sad, but that she did that  _and_ stole your music? Normally I wouldn’t be one for revenge, but this goes lower than anything I’ve ever known.”

“I dunno,” Dan mumbles. “I mean – ”

“You don’t know what? Come on, we’re going to enjoy this.”

“It’s not right,” Dan mutters. If you’re honest, he still looks exhausted.

You chew on your lip a bit, thinking carefully about what to say next. Dan doesn’t pull his hand away even when you’re still holding it, subconsciously tracing small circles on his skin.

“You don’t deserve this,” you repeat. “You don’t deserve to be so upset over someone who used you, over someone who didn’t care when all you ever did was give them your support. You don’t deserve to lose sleep over her. I know it’s hard to forget what she meant to you, but you have to look past that. Think objectively. She cheated. She stole your art. You should be a little mad.”

Dan sighs and looks up at you. He looks defeated, and it hurts you. Even if Dan doesn’t want this, you do. You want to make her regret having done what she did to make Dan so upset.

“I’m not that sort of guy though, am I?” Dan mumbled. “Yeah she fucked up, but I shouldn’t make her life a living hell.”

You narrow your eyes slightly. God, this guy is too nice for his own good. “She did more than fuck up. A fuck up is typically a mistake, which happens by accident. She chose to do this. And you won’t be making her life a living hell; it’s just temporary revenge. Dan, look at me.”

Dan grudgingly obliges.

“You’re a good guy, yeah? I’m not going to inflate your ego right now, but you need to relax. It’s a prank, alright? Think of it like one you’d play on Kyle or something.”

“You called, lovebirds?”

At Kyle’s voice, Dan pulls his hand away from yours and looks up at Kyle.

“What the fuck are you wearing?”

Kyle frowns, tugging on his waistcoat. “I thought it looked rather dashing,” he comments, making Dan scoff. “Anyway, I’ll be your waiter for the night.”

“You’ve got to be joking,” Dan cringes. “How did you even pull this off?”

Kyle grins down at the two of you and says, “If you look the part no one asks.” The second Dan shoots his head up looking terrified, obviously considering the prospect of being thrown out (or worse), Kyle rolls his eyes and adds, “My cousin’s family owns the place. He owes me one, plus he would do the same for his friend. He told me these two had a reservation so I figured we could play some games.”

“Won’t they recognize you, idiot?” Dan comments.

Kyle pouts. “I can’t believe you’d think me to be  _that_  dumb! My cousin’s going to be dealing with them, I’m gonna work in the back and help him.”

Dan cringes and drops his head into his hands with a groan.

“Can I get you guys anything?”

You look over at Dan, but he’s too busy wallowing to give any sort of response.

“Get us a couple of waters, I guess. And whatever your cousin thinks is the best dish here,” you reply. Kyle nods and disappears again.

-

Well that was something. To start with Dan was super uncomfortable, but the further the night went on, the more he relaxed (but that might have been the few wines Kyle brought around).

The entire restaurant had quite the show, watching the carefully crafted pranks play out. They did it so that Kyle’s cousin wouldn’t get complaints; just subtle things that were enough to piss her off.

Some of those were tinkering with her food, another included a spilt drink, and the final one consisted of a precisely timed child shrieking right behind her as she was sipping some of her drink, coughing to keep from choking. It wasn’t the worst, and it surely wasn’t putting her through hell, or half of what she deserved, but what mattered to you was that by the end of it Dan was laughing along, if only a little.

(Also there may have been a thing with that same child having been bribed to throw something in her hair and promptly try to get it out with his grubby hands, making her yell in pain as her hair was yanked every which way. Dan found it the hardest not to laugh at that one.)

Neither of you are prepared for what happens next. As they get up to leave, they come towards your end of the restaurant. Your eyes widen, but you don’t look away in time. She saw you. She saw you with Dan, here, now. And boy, does she look pissed.

“Looks like you moved on fast,” she says coldly the second she reaches the table with The Bastard in tow.

Dan, not having paid much attention, shoots his head up and stares wide eyed at her.

“Actually Dan and I are only friends… As we have always been.” You battle the stern glare she gives you with one of your own, and eventually her own guilt makes her crumble, fluttering her lashes and looking away.

Dan sits up straight and glances at you before staring at her. “Sure didn’t take  _you_ long.”

Bri’s expression falters. That Bastard tugs on her arm and with a little hesitation the two finally leave.

Dan lets out an exasperated sigh and slouches down in his seat. You’re not sure if you expect him to go back to being upset again, but you sure don’t expect him to laugh like he does, even if it’s just a short breathy one.

“Bitch,” he mutters. You blink a couple of times, trying to hold back a laugh, but it doesn’t quite work. Dan looks up at you and his smile widens a little. You feel something in your chest tighten, but  _no_. No.

“We should probably get going too, huh?” you suggest. Dan nods, his lip quirking up in a new smile when he stands up.

“Shall we?” he says jokingly, offering you his arm. You roll your eyes and link your arm in his and head towards the exit where Kyle is waiting.

“On the house,” Kyle confirms, and just barely squints at where you and Dan have comfortably linked your arms together.

The three of you leave without looking back, and without once thinking back to Those Bastards.

~~~

You all end up sticking around at Dan’s place that night, spread across his sitting room watching TV. Kyle spent a few minutes imitating Bri’s expressions, as well as sharing stories about the havoc in the kitchen (but his cousin fixed it all up and his family was surprisingly okay with it).

You don’t remember drifting off, or even feeling tired, but apparently you did. You peel your eyes open to the dark with the TV off. There’s a blanket on you, and it seems like Kyle’s gone. Dan’s probably in his room, you figure in your half unconscious state.

You shut your eyes before snuggling into the pillow beneath you, taking a deep breath and getting a hint of that smell that’s unique to Dan. Sleep takes over quickly after that, a smile left lingering on your lips.


	12. Cherry Wine

A lot of time has passed since the rocky winter, since the start to your friendship with Dan. A lot of time speaking relatively; it’s only been a few months.

The holidays passed, and you’ve gone back to college. You’re busier than you were then, obviously, but you still make time for Dan and Kyle. The other two, Will and Woody, you’ve grown close to them too, but not as much. They tend to keep to themselves a little more.

That being said, the lot of you spent New Year’s together, and you got to meet Will’s and Woody’s girlfriends. Both of them were pretty sweet and accommodating, but later that night when it was closing in on midnight and they were hanging off their boyfriends waiting for the countdown, they kept looking between you and Dan strangely.

Obviously you knew what the glances were about; you weren’t that oblivious. What you didn’t understand was why those guys hadn’t told them that you and Dan are just friends. Why doesn’t  _anyone_  understand that?

You shrugged it off at the time and went about enjoying yourself. You watched Kyle and Dan drink a little (Kyle wanted to challenge Dan, but he just laughed awkwardly and said he probably shouldn’t), and talked with Chrissy about the idea of the band and about your college.

The lot of you spent the night outside at some garden party their friends had invited them to, and even though you were somewhat sociable you kept to yourself and tried to avoid feeling awkward when you were sitting alone half the night.

Sometime later Kyle sat next to you, throwing an arm around your shoulder and leaning in close to talk in your ear over the noise of the party.

“Not got a loved one for a midnight kiss?” he joked, leaning back with a laugh, because apparently it was  _so_ funny.

“You don’t either,” you bit back, and Kyle faked being hit.

“Ouch, harsh. Someone’s touchy.”

You rolled your eyes at him and shoved him away, looking across the garden, briefly catching Dan’s gaze before he looked away and went out of sight. Alright.

He stayed with you for a while and kept you company, and the less liquid that remained in his bottle, the more he started babbling about some girl that just started working at his place.

“She’s gorgeous,” he slurred, his eyes glazed over as he looked up towards the sky.

You laughed a little. “I’m sure she is. You should have brought her here tonight.”

Kyle blushed a little at that and your jaw dropped. “You didn’t.”

“I didn’t!” Kyle argued. “I swear! She just happened to be here!”

“What? Oh my gosh go find her! You are totally kissing her tonight.”

Kyle blushed even more and grumbled, taking another swig of his drink. “Nah she probably wouldn’t like me anyway.”

You rolled your eyes again, as was frequent with Kyle, and pushed him from behind so he would stand up.

“Go. Take a shot.” Kyle pouted down at you, so for good measure, you added with a shit eating grin, “For me!” He narrowed his eyes at you, but nonetheless he walked off. You watched as he tapped a girl on the shoulder and scratched the back of his neck awkwardly, fumbling over his words.

The countdown.

10.

Kyle looked over desperately at you.

9.

You grinned at him and nodded. “You’re doing this!!!” You mouthed.

8.

He turned back to the girl in front of him and smiled awkwardly, and you watched as a slight blush rose on her cheeks too.

7.

Content enough, you looked across the garden to find your other friends. Will, Woody, their girlfriends, and Dan were a few feet to one side. Dan was watching you discreetly.

6.

Will grinned at Dan and nudged him in your directions, and both yours and Dan’s eyes widened a little.

5.

Dan blushed profusely.

4.

Dan locked eyes with you. Will pushed him again before turning to his girlfriend.

3.

Dan was walking towards you.

2.

Dan smiled nervously as he sat beside you. You smiled back.

1.

Neither of you looked away. You were almost certain Dan’s eyes flickered down to your lips.

Happy New Year.

~~~

That was then, this is now. Much to your relief (so you’ve tried to tell yourself), Dan didn’t kiss you that night. He just sat beside you because everyone else had someone and you two were alone together. Just two friends chilling as the fireworks lit up the night sky.

The tension that was there at the countdown dissipated almost instantly as Dan recomposed himself and cleared his throat, sitting up straight and looking out at the garden full of people exchanging hugs and kisses.

Even though your heart had been racing and your ears were buzzing a little, you made a nerdy reference to Tolkien and Gandalf’s fireworks and broke the silence, both of you laughing a little and getting into a discussion.

You can’t help about thinking of that night from time to time, but it probably isn’t good that you’re thinking of it right before you head to his place.

Despite being busy, you’ve made it a habit to visit Dan as much as you can. At first it was just to keep an eye on him, to make sure he was okay after the whole Bri thing, but then it just became a routine for the both of you to go to each other’s place and talk a while, the TV left on for no reason but to have some background noise.

A while later you’re sitting across from him on the couch, both of you looking out towards the window. The sky is clear and blue, the lush green of the trees in full blossom. To your delight, Dan has the window propped open, so the fresh spring breeze is flowing through the room.

“Half an hour, Dan,” you say. “Half an hour and we have to leave, alright?”

Dan doesn’t look at you, gnawing at a piece of loose skin on his lower lip. “I – I’m not sure about this,” he mutters. “This gig, it. I don’t think I can do it. I  _can’t_  do it.”

You look at him sternly without saying anything, waiting for him to look at you before responding. “You can. And you will. Your friends believe in you; we’re all rooting for you. Even Kyle said he wants to do this. They all want to, but they can’t do it without you, Dan.”

Dan doesn’t reply again. He can’t hold the eye contact, letting his gaze drop to his hand in his laps. Always fidgeting.

“Dan, what do you plan on doing with your life if not music?”

He mutters something inaudible.

“What?”

“Nothing,” he says, voice tight and barely above a squeak.

“Good. So if you want to make your place here, you have to do this. Dan, I don’t care if he stole your music. I don’t want to hear your music in anyone else’s voice but yours. Shit, Dan, if you really wanted me to I would steal other people’s music just to hear you sing it. I still have yet to hear you sing properly and even though I haven’t I know you’re going to be amazing. Please, Dan. Don’t give up so easily. We’ve tried so hard and come this far. Everyone’s on your side. You can do this, I know it,  _you_ know it.”

Dan looks up again, a playful smile on his lips. You feel your heart jump into your throat unexpectedly and will it to go back down.

“You would steal music for me?”

“Well,” you hesitate, “not by cheating on someone or anything like that, and I know it’s totally uncool and immoral or whatever, but Dan your voice  _needs_  to be heard.  _I_  need to…” you trail off, not knowing what more to say.

A new smile starts spreading on Dan’s face, and you get the feeling of relief welling up inside of you. He lets out a deep breath and nods a little. “Yeah. Yeah, alright, I can do that then.”

“Oh my gosh thank you,” you breathe, leaning forward to catch him in a tight hug. When you pull back, you ignore the warmth in your cheeks and scrutinize his outfit. “Let’s get you into something a little more decent for the gig at least.”

~~~

Dan’s up on the stage, trembling a little nervously. If you’re completely honest, so are you. You’ve not heard him besides the few times he’d hum a few lines when he thought you weren’t paying attention.

The guys are sitting at the same table as you, somewhere near the front. They don’t look nearly as nervous as you. In fact, they look ridiculously relaxed. You rub your hands against your jeans a little, moving your leg up and down in anticipation. Kyle puts a hand on your shoulder and you turn to him.

“He’s gonna be great,” he assures you. You nod. You don’t doubt that. You don’t doubt Dan at all. Then why are you so nervous?

“Hi, my name is Dan,” Dan says into the microphone behind his keyboard. He looks to your table and Woody gives him a quick thumbs up, Kyle throwing in a whistle for good measure. “This is an original song, it’s called Overjoyed.”

You watch him take a deep breath before letting his fingers fall onto the keys, hitting the first chord.

You stare. You focus all your attention towards Dan and tune every other sound out. You can feel your heart racing, but not because you’re nervous.

Dan’s voice is phenomenal. You want to find a way, some metaphor or the other relating the touch of silk to the unfaltering flow of his voice, but you can’t think right now. You can’t even _breathe_  because it’s too loud. You need to hear every second.

About halfway, Dan lets his eyes fall shut as his fingers continue playing, his voice still going strong and steady. You let your gaze drop to his hands, lost in the melody. You get the brief thought of how nice his hands look, splayed across the keys the way they are, but you shove the thought out of your mind to continue listening.

It only seems to get better, but you daren’t look away to gauge other people’s reactions right now.

It all ends too soon, with Dan’s voice quietening down on the last lines. He opens his eyes again and looks out to the audience quickly, his eyes landing on yours and staying there.

_Oh I feel overjoyed,_

_When you listen to my words._

It takes you a while to register everyone’s applaud, because Dan’s still keeping his eyes on you until he finishes completely, his mouth splitting into a wide grin. It’s not until Kyle claps his hand on your shoulder with an “I told you so” that you notice what just happened. You feel a bit of heat rush into your cheeks as you clap with the rest of the audience. You can’t help but to smile, finally looking across the room.

You turn back to the stage to Dan again, only he’s pretty much right in front of you having already left the stage. You stand up instinctively and begin flailing your arms trying to think of what to say.

“That was,” you start, but you honestly can’t think of a word to do it justice, so you do the next best thing and wrap your arms around him as tight as you can, which for some reason instigates a second round of applause and a whistle from Will. You don’t doubt Dan will get on his case for that later, but right now you’re not ready to let him go.

 


	13. Date Night

You peel your eyes open and tug the covers over your head to avoid the crisp chill from the open window. It’s getting warmer, but it’s still that awkward period between spring and winter where the weather is a bit hormonal and leaving the window open is a little risky.

You try to shut your eyes and go back to sleep when you realize what it is that woke you up. You groan and try to ignore the knocking at your door, but it doesn’t stop, so you drag your sorry ass out of bed and slip on a sweater before shuffling through your flat. Yeah, because it was totally a smart idea staying up till 4 AM last night doing absolutely nothing. Well, at least it’s a weekend.

You’re still rubbing the sleep from your eyes when you open the door to see a freshly shaved and grinning Dan standing at your door.

“What time is it?” you ask bluntly. “Isn’t it kind of rude waking me up like this?” You turn back around and trust him to shut the door behind him as you set up a pot of coffee for the both of you.

Dan grins ruefully and apologizes, informing you that it is noon.  _Noon_. He says it like he’s judging you for still being in bed.

“Yeah?” you bite, shuffling to a stool next to Dan at the breakfast bar. “Well it’s not like you wake up at 5 AM every fucking morning, so stop talking to me like that.”

“Like what?” Dan says innocently, laughing at your tragic state. He spins around in the stool a bit and it makes you narrow your eyes at him. Since when were you best friends with a child?

Not wanting to argue any more you get up and say you’ll be back in five. Your intention is to wash up at least a little, but your bed looks  _so_ good. It’s fluffy and inviting and you just know how warm it is.

You never really expected yourself to plop onto the bed and fall back asleep, but you suppose that’s what happened, because you wake up groggily to Dan gently shaking your shoulders. He’s laughing mercilessly as you groan and roll over onto your back, arm over your eyes.

“Did I really just do that?” you ask.

You hear one of Dan’s breathy laughs, and in your hazy state you can’t force your stomach to not flip-flop at the sound. “Yeah, you did,” he replies, albeit a little endearingly. You force yourself to sit up and settle your elbows on your knees, propping your head up in your hands to help stop the rush in your head.

“Kay,” you mumble, “I’m officially a mess.”

“Aww,” Dan coos, pushing some of your hair out of your face and trying to pat down your nest of bedhead. “No you’re not,” his tone dripping with mock sincerity. You glare at him, which only functions to make him laugh a bit before you grab a pillow and whack him one. He goes with it and falls back against the bed. “Mmm, I can see why you wouldn’t want to get up,” Dan mutters. “How do you even get up on time for uni in this thing?”

“Haha,” you drone, pulling your arms over your head until you hear a crack in your shoulders.

“Disgusting,” Dan comments. You roll your eyes and grab a quick change of clothes.

“Fall asleep if you want, I’m going to shower.”

Dan rolls onto his side and watches you for a moment. “You sure you’ll be okay in there? Don’t want to wait here for hours just to find out you’ve dropped half unconscious with the water running.”

A slight heat rises in your cheeks, but you cover it up with a glare before turning into the bathroom and locking the door behind you.

You strip out of your nightclothes and catch your eye in the mirror, and you’re hit with a realization of how domestic that whole bit seemed. You shake your head at yourself and duck into the shower, ignoring your thoughts like you always do.

When you’re out, all fresh and smelling fantastic from the new coconut body wash you used, you find Dan isn’t in your room. You shrug, half sure you were going to walk out to find him passed out on the bed. Perhaps it’s better you don’t have that kind of an image in your head. God knows you’re already in deep enough.

“Where to today?” you ask, heading to the kitchen. Dan’s sprawled across the couch watching a rerun of Friends.

“Nowhere,” Dan replies, not looking away from the TV.

You raise an eyebrow as you pour two cups of coffee. “Oh yeah? So what then? Plans are off for today?”

Dan turns around this time with a little frown. “No. I was thinking we could stay in and I could educate you on the wonderful world of cinema since you’re only acquainted with modern day shit films.”

“Hey!” you argue, “There is nothing wrong with the Marvel universe.”

“Maybe not,” Dan replies nonchalantly, “but when you have an insatiable obsession for one of the characters…” he trails off, looking pointedly to the Captain America shield on your shirt. You frown and cover part of the shield with your arm defensively.

“Chris Evans is hot and there’s nothing you can say or do to change my mind. And Steve Rogers is an awesome character, okay? His solo movies are the best of the Marvel universe’s standalone movies for any character. Unless Black Widow ever gets one, then I’m pretty sure she’d win hands down.”

Dan scoffs and turns back to the TV, not bothering to push you any further. He knows that if he tries he’ll get stuck in an hour (and then some) long discussion with you relentlessly rambling. To be fair, he’s not any better when it comes to David Lynch stuff.

When you join him on the sofa, Dan’s chewing thoughtfully on his lower lip, tuned out as the adverts run.

You’re about to ask what the matter is when he asks thoughtfully, “So… you and Kyle…?”

You sit up a little straighter, your eyebrows drawing in. “What about me and… Kyle?”

Dan laughs a little awkwardly and focuses on the TV again. “I dunno actually. Was hoping you could tell me.”

You feel your stomach lurch a little, and your heart rate pick up. You try to chill yourself out because it doesn’t mean anything, but your body is never in agreement with your head. “Nothing,” you say finally.

“You sure? You guys are pretty close,” he comments passively. He doesn’t look like… He’s just passing conversation like the topic isn’t so out of nowhere. You wonder if he actually cares about the answer or not.

“We uh,” you pause, “We talked it over and we’re better off as friends.”

“Huh,” Dan says, “S’a shame. You guys would make a cute couple.”

You watch Dan for any indication of his mood, but for once he’s doing a good job of looking like he’s not that interested, like it’s just an inquiry. Your stomach sinks a bit when you realize that that’s probably all it is.

To be honest, you’re also kind of disappointed that he thinks you and Kyle would be a cute couple. Whatever.

~~~

“You have got to be shitting me,” Dan deadpans, shaking his head. “How can you not remember Ghostbusters?”

“I don’t know?” you respond helplessly. “I just don’t!”

“That’s it,” Dan announces, slapping his thighs before getting up. “I’m going back to my place, I’ll be back in a few minutes with the movie and a couple of drinks, alright?”

You roll your eyes and lean back into the sofa as you watch him leave. You know it’s useless to protest anyway.

It’s not your fault that you fall asleep part way through the movie, right? Well. It’s a good movie, fine, but you just kind of felt warm and fuzzy and it was late by the time you guys actually started the movie. Weekends are meant to be lazy anyway.

You ask him why he didn’t wake you up, but Dan just shrugs and scratches the back of his neck and mumbles, “I dunno. You were annoyed when I woke you up earlier today so…” he trails off. You brush it off and leave the blame on Dan and tell him he’ll have to get you to watch it some other night before making him leave since you have class tomorrow.

He gives you a warm hug and a quick kiss on the neck before he pulls back and leaves. It’s just habit, you’ve noticed, something he does from time to time. It doesn’t mean anything.

~~~

The next time you see Dan it’s a little over a week since you fell asleep watching Ghostbusters. Usually not much happens in that span of time, but recently uni has been piling up, building up the physical stress that keeps your shoulders pulled back and tense. On top of that, your job hunting has been tough. You got a few calls back, but hardly enough. You’d already bombed one interview and on top of it all there was news from home that keeps you up every night.

Dan doesn’t take long to notice. He throws you a few concerned glances; tries to crack a few jokes and the lines in his forehead grow a little deeper each time you don’t respond.

It’s not until the two of you are sat on a park bench with coffees in hand that he finally decides to say something.

“Huh?” you mumble, your mind feeling like it’s burrowing through the park grounds and going in erratic, tireless circles.

You feel a hand on your shoulder and turn to see Dan’s concerned face studying your own. “Are you okay?”

Realizing you’ve ignored probably everything he’s said the whole time you’ve been together, you shake your head and clear your throat. “Gosh, I’m sorry, I just - ”

“Hey,” Dan says softly, “It’s okay. Don’t apologize, just tell me what’s going on, yeah?”

It’s a beautiful day, you realize. The warmth of the sun is balanced out by the slight breeze that’s ruffling through the leaves of the trees that line the paths. The air is light and chill, and all around families and kids are taking advantage of the first signs of spring. Dogs are being walked, athletic people are taking their first comfortable jogs of the season, and kids are laughing while they drag their parents to the one really good ice cream shop just outside the park grounds. You’d been oblivious to all of it.

“My mum’s in the hospital,” you finally reply, watching as a fresh blossom on one of the trees flutters to the ground, only to get crushed when some kid skates over it without a second thought.

 


	14. Just Friends?

Dan’s expression drops, a moment of shock gripping him before it gives way to concern. He doesn’t think twice before wrapping an arm around your shoulders and pulling you in for a side hug.

“Is she alright?” Dan asks.

You chew your lower lip and recall how hectic the week has been, endless calls exchanged back and forth as you tried to de-stress long enough to at least finish some assignments.

“Yeah she’s… She should be fine. She just blacked out and no one was home for another few hours and… She didn’t wake up for a few days.”

Dan sucks in a breath and squeezes your shoulder a bit.

“They’re still running tests and stuff. We don’t know why…”

“Are you going to go see her?”

You laugh bitterly. “I can’t, can I? I’m still trying to get a job while paying the damn rent and I can’t afford to skip any classes right now.” You’d gotten a job sometime in the new year, but with budget cuts and other excuses you were laid off with just enough to get by for a few months. 

Dan sighs and turns a little on the bench, and you can’t help but move in and clutch onto him. You’re scared. You’re trying to hold it down, but you’re scared.

“I’m sorry,” Dan whispers into your hair, pressing his fingers in soothing circles at the nape of your neck. “It’s okay.”

A shaky breath escapes your lips. You know it’s not. You know it’s not okay to not visit your mother when anything could happen in a moments notice. None of it is okay. But Dan said it, and it helps to ease your pain minutely.

Dan doesn’t make any effort to pull back for some time, letting you take as much comfort as you need from him. The only time you move is to get a bit more comfortable so as to avoid neck cramps.

~~~

It’s a couple of days after that when (for once) you’re up on time that you hear a knocking at your door. Dan smiles tautly when you open the door for him, and he slips past as if everything is normal.

He fidgets more than usual, tugging at the sleeves of his hoodie and worrying his bottom lip to the point where it looks about ready to bleed.

“Dan?” you ask. He looks up at you and flashes a quick smile. Okay. “What’s up?”

“Uh,” Dan hesitates, squirming on the spot. He paces a few steps back and forth before pulling something out of his pocket and holding it in front of you.

You look around the envelope before you and raise an eyebrow at him. “What’s this?”

“Open it.”

You take it from him cautiously and lift the unsealed flap, pulling out…

“This…”

“A ticket,” Dan clarifies, although it’s pretty obvious to you. “To go back home and see your mum.”

“But how?” You mutter, staring at the paper before you. Your body feels frozen, and the few words escaping your mouth feel like molasses.

Dan shrugs. “The boys and I pooled some money from gigs and stuff. We want you to go.”

You shake your head and feel your stomach tickling, your eyes beginning to blur. “Dan, I can’t - ”

“It’s your mum. You can’t say no to this, okay? If you can’t accept it as a gift from us to you, take it as a gift for her. You should be there for her.”

“But -”

“Screw uni,” Dan cuts you off. “You can skip it for a week and catch up later. She needs you.”

Your chest fills with a drowning sensation of relief, and with the buzzing in your ears and the overwhelming gratitude you can hardly register yourself whispering thank you over and over again.

You do the only thing that feels right in the moment and tackle Dan in a hug. He stumbles a little, but laughs airily before wrapping his arms around you and squeezing tight. It feels good and genuine and you can’t help but to let your mind think it means more than it does. He kisses the top of your head, and even though he’s done it a thousand times before, it sends a rush of warmth through you.

Dan fucking Smith.

~~~

Dan glances at his watch after you join him from having checked in for the flight. “Guys wanted to be here but - ”

“I know,” you cut him off, “you’ve got a gig tonight and they had to set up. Kyle already texted me multiple times to apologize about not seeing me off from the airport for that reason, and you wouldn’t shut up about tonight’s show since you had it booked.”

Dan laughs guiltily and scratches the back of his neck, rocking up onto the balls of his feet. “Yeah,” he mumbles. You watch him and feel your heart swell with that familiar fondness. You don’t realize you’re staring until Dan says quietly, “What?”

You blink rapidly and avert your gaze. “Nothing.”

You risk a quick glance back to catch him looking at you with a seemingly permanent warm smile. Your chest tightens a bit, and you force yourself to look away before your old habit of word vomit takes you victim again.

You jump when you feel Dan’s warm hands wrap around yours.

“You’re shaking,” Dan explains.

Are you? Oh.

“I’m just a bit nervous,” you reply. It’s only half a lie. Dan gives you a reassuring smile and squeezes your hands. “Thank you, I – I can’t explain how much this means. I swear I’ll pay you back and - ”

“It’s alright,” Dan says softly. You look up at him and can’t help the way your cheeks heat up under his gaze. “Don’t worry about it. Don’t even think about paying back until you can afford it, and by that I mean when you’re stable and have some money to spare, not giving up your money for groceries or whatever.”

You swallow and force a small smile before nodding. “Thank you.”

Dan laughs, the smile going straight to his eyes. “And stop saying thank you! What are friends for, right?”

Right. Friends.

“Uh…” Dan watches you oddly. “What do you mean by that?”

You narrow your eyes at a thread on Dan’s shirt and curse at yourself in your head. You thought you’d given up that habit of thinking out loud.

“Nothing,” you say quickly. “I just… Figured we’d at least be best friends by now.”

Smooth cover.

Dan hesitates just barely before he grins at you and pulls you into a hug. “Right. You ready for this?”

“Not really,” you mutter against his shirt. “I’m nervous. A bit scared.”

You can feel Dan’s arms tighten around you, enveloping you in such a meaningful hug that you feel like crying right on the spot. “It’ll be okay, alright, love? And I’ll be right here when you get back. I love you.”

You freeze and stop breathing for a moment. When your mind kicks back into gear somewhat, you pull back and force a smile.

Dan notes the tension, his own eyebrows drawing together in confusion. “What’s the matter?”

“Nothing,” you insist. “Just. Thank you.”

Dan smiles at you again and it makes you fill up with butterflies. But it’s nothing special, right? He just smiles a lot at everyone. Nothing special.

“I uh,” you say awkwardly, looking away from Dan. “I should probably get going. Security an’ all. You know the drill.”

Dan nods and smiles, giving you another quick hug before saying bye. When you turn to leave, he shoves his hands deep into his pockets and lets out a mute sigh. You don’t hear it though, and you don’t see the physical deflation that accompanies it.

You step in line behind a middle aged lady as you swing your bag around to pull out your boarding pass.

“He’s cute,” the woman says.

“Huh?”

“Your boyfriend,” she clarifies, “he’s sweet.”

Without thinking, you reply, “Yeah, he is sweet.” Then you find your boarding pass and realize what the woman said. “Wait, no! No, no, he’s not my… We’re just friends.”

The woman raises an eyebrow but refrains from saying anything else. You groan inwardly at the awkward encounter and instinctively turn back to where Dan was standing. Or rather, is, because he hasn’t left yet.

Dan gives you a smile and a quick wave, which you return whilst trying to ignore the knot in your stomach. You can try and deny it as much as you want, but you know that you were screwed over since the day you met Dan.

 


	15. Green Light

Your sister didn’t let go of you for two solid minutes when she picked you up from the airport. You thought it was longer, but your dad told you he’d timed it. Two minutes. It was a messy, teary-eyed reunion between the lot of you before you were able to get in the car and be taken to the hospital where your brother was staying with your mum. He looked tense when you walked into the corridor of her room, but relaxed quite significantly upon seeing you.

You’d missed them all a lot, and despite the circumstances, nothing felt better than being able to hug them and tell them that you love them in person.

“How’s mum?” you ask cautiously. You don’t want to be too hopeful, but you don’t know how you’d handle it if she was anything but fine.

“She’s good,” your brother admits. Your dad and sister take a seat beside where he was in the hallway and talk between each other for some time. “She’s resting. We haven’t told her you’re here but… it’s good you came.”

You nod solemnly and sniffle a little bit. “She’s gonna be okay, right?”

Your brother gives you a sympathetic look and nods before tugging you in for a hug. It’s hard to not cry and you’d hate to do it in front of her, so you get some of it out now.

When you’re finally ready, you pull back and nod, accepting a tissue from a nurse that’s passing by with a quiet and weak thank you.

“She might be asleep, but you can wake her up,” your dad says. You nod and turn to the door, taking in a deep breath before turning the handle.

She looks pale, and she looks exhausted. Your throat closes up and your eyes begin to sting again. You shake your head and try to gather your bearings. You can do this. For her.

The second your weight makes the mattress dip, your mum rouses from her sleep. She always was a light sleeper. It takes her a second to focus on you, but when she does, a deep frown settles on her face.

“Oh baby,” she mutters. Your lower lip trembles as she sits up to meet you halfway in a tight embrace. You missed her so much. Even though you’d cried enough outside, you can’t help but to let a few tears loose, even as she pulls back and pushes your hair aside.

“I probably look like shit,” she mumbles, smiling brightly when you let out a laugh. “Look at you,” she muses, “You’re so beautiful.”

You duck your head and wipe away at your cheeks quickly before looking back up with a more solid smile.

“Shouldn’t you be in class?” she asks.

You shrug. “You’re more important.”

“Honey,” she says, taking your hands. You sniffle a bit more. She’s here. She’s okay. “I thought you were still jobhunting though, how did you…”

“My friends, they uh. They pooled up some money and got the ticket for me. A gift of sorts.”

“Well you’ve got some wonderful friends then, yeah?” she says, cupping your cheek with her hand. “Gosh baby I’ve missed you.”

A fresh wave of tears hit you and gosh you’ve missed her too. She pulls you forward into a hug and lets you hold onto her tightly.

“I’m not going anywhere,” she assures you. “I’m fine, I’m right here.”

You nod into her shoulder and try to steel yourself up some, if only to have an actual conversation and reduce the ebbing headache that’s threatening to form.

When you pull back she smiles sadly and sighs. “You look good. And happy. Are you happy?”

“Yeah, mum,” you reply. It feels like for the first time in answering that, you’re telling the truth. “I am.” A small laugh leaves your mouth and all of a sudden you can’t stop smiling. It’s a relief to know you’re happy.

A few moments pass before she speaks again. “So… Is there anyone special?”

Immediately your thoughts flip to Dan, but you brush the idea off by scrunching your nose. “No.”

“I know your smiles,” she retorts, running her thumb beneath the curve of your lower lip. “That smile says there is something and you’re not telling me.”

Busted. You know she’s right, and that if anyone’s going to get the truth out of you, it’s her and her alone. “It’s not…” you start, not knowing how to describe your relationship with Dan. She grins a little knowing that you gave in. “It’s more of a friend thing.” Yeah. That suffices, right? And what did you say at the airport when you fucked up and thought out loud? Best friends. Right.

“What’s their name?”

“Dan. He uh, he’s the one that helped organize the ticket. But it’s nothing more than… We’re just - ”

She doesn’t exactly say anything, but the knowing look your mum gives you shuts you up.

“Bear,” she says wistfully, the nickname taking you back to easier years when you were tucked into bed each night, her voice reading you to sleep. “Life is too short.”

You frown at that. She says it like she knows more than she’s letting on.

“Facebook shows me more than I need to know that you care about him,” you mum explains with a sly grin. You smile sheepishly and shrug. Of course she knows. It’s silly to have thought she doesn’t. She’s a mum; it’s like a weird mum sense thing that exists, right? You don’t bother asking for any more explanation. It’s not like she’s been wrong before.

“Bear, you do one thing for me when you go back, okay? Just tell him. From what I’ve heard, I don’t doubt he feels the same.”

“Yeah?” you squeak. Your mum laughs and nods.

“Yeah.”

~~~

The rest of the week went by with a lot less crying and a lot more getting back into the swing of teasing your siblings and helping out around the house while your mum was resting. The lot of you paid visits during the day, and there was always someone with her so that she wasn’t alone, even though she insisted she was fine.

Now you’re back in your own grounds, waiting impatiently for people to get their baggage from the overhead compartments so they can hurry the fuck up and get off the plane.

Kyle had been obsessively texting you on the trip, and even before you turned your phone on flight mode you’d gotten one last ‘have a safe flight!’ from him. Dan had texted you some too, though not quite as much, a few good morning and goodnight texts, but nothing quite as much as Kyle. You appreciate it though; Kyle’s a good friend.

You know that Kyle’s going to be at the airport to pick you up, but he didn’t say who else is going to be there. You know you hope Dan will be there, but you don’t know for sure. You’re kind of nervous to see him, thinking back on the conversation you and your mum had the first day you got to see her. That being said, you’re homesick for your apartment, as well as for your friends.

Once you have your bags and are out into the arrivals area, you scan the sparse crowd briefly before your eyes land right on Dan. You get a rush of warmth, followed by a flock of butterflies that just won’t settle down. You note that Kyle and Woody are also there, but you kind of have tunnel vision. You can’t help it, especially after Dan sent you a little heart emoji each night before you went to sleep.

He’s not looking your way until Kyle nudges him and tilts his head in your direction with a knowing smile, but when he sees you you feel like exploding at the way that his smile widens. Shit.

When you’re close enough you set aside your bag and practically run into Dan with a hug. He laughs and you feel it, what with your face pressed up against him. Despite your better judgement you let yourself take a few deep breaths and think to yourself that it feels good to be here, to get that rush of comfort from his scent and the solidity from his frame enveloping you.

It might be longer than it should be, but Dan doesn’t make any move to let you go, and no one bothers to interrupt. You don’t even pay attention to the warmth in your cheeks or the way Dan swallows and runs a hand through his hair when you peel yourself off to turn address the rest of the company.

“Kyle!” you say excitedly. He grins and gives you a perceptive wink. You ignore it and roll your eyes before hugging him too, though not nearly as long or cosy as your hug with Dan was.

You give Woody a quick hug too and ask him how Chrissy is before stepping back and smiling at the lot of them.

“So, home?”

“Actually,” Woody says, “We’ve got a gig tonight.”

“Again? Wow you guys are getting big, huh?”

“Eh, not really,” Dan supplies, “It’s the only one we’ve had since you left and the only one we’ve got booked for the next two or three months.”

“Huh,” you mutter. “I guess I should travel back home more often. Seems like every time I’m here you guys have a show.”

Dan laughs, and you suspect the little strangled noise he makes after wasn’t meant to be heard.

~~~

“Nooo,” Dan whines, ducking his head away from your hand.

“Quit whining and come here,” you complain. “Let me fix it!!”

“It’s fine!” Dan argues, touching his hair defensively. You roll your eyes and step closer, moving his hand out of the way. He sighs but lets his hand drop and twitch a little at his side.

“You’re such a dork,” you say under your breath, pushing back some stray hairs and fixing the style up properly. You don’t really realize you’re super close to him until you’re done messing with his hair and glance up to give him an ‘I told you so’ look. Yeah, you’re pretty damn close.

Dan… He looks  _really_  good pre-show. And he smells good too, like he showered before the show. He doesn’t step back or look away, and suddenly the quiet room is really loud. You swallow to try and help the sorry state of your dry throat, just as he resorts to chewing on his lip.

Your heart is beating real damn fast and the blush is rushing heat to the tips of your ears. You can tell without touching or looking that they’re hot and bright red. You only hope Dan doesn’t notice.

You remember what your mum said, but something in you snaps. You can’t. Not right now. You clear your throat and look away, mumbling something about how he should probably set up or something with the other guys.

“Yeah,” Dan says quietly, swaying on his feet. “Uh,” he pauses. You look back up at him, and gosh is that a mistake, because he’s smiling down at you. It doesn’t quite reach his eyes. “Thank you.”

You force a laugh out and try to find a way to casually step back without making it look awkward. Yeah, that doesn’t work. “For what?”

Dan averts his gaze to a corner of the green room and shrugs. “All of this. Not letting me fuck up my life over one stupid thing and keeping me on track so the band and I could do this. Thank you.”

You blink a few times. “You’re welcome.”

Dan smiles tightly again before ducking out, leaving you flushed and confused.

~~~

The soundcheck isn’t quite complete, but Dan got out there first to make sure his mic was right, so while everyone else is busy, the two of you are back in the green room again. You’ve both forgotten (or at least gotten past) the awkward moment from before and are talking about your trip. Dan’s sitting at one end, and you’re lying on your back with your knees pulled up and your head in his lap. One of his hands is carding through your hair, and it feels good.

You’re recalling messing about with your brother by misplacing his protein shaker every time you put the dishes away when you suddenly feel Dan’s touch on your stomach. He doesn’t notice your breath hitch as you realize his fingers are lazily trailing their way up and down. You continue talking, and his expression doesn’t falter. He’s still looking off at some corner of the room, humming and listening with the same warm smiles and pretending like nothing’s happening.

You feel your heart rate pick up and your breathing goes a bit more irregular, your speech cut off with hesitations. He’s listening, but he’s not paying attention to anything except the stories. You clench your jaw slightly and look up for the ceiling.

Yeah, it’s been a while since you’ve been in a relationship and your friends have never been too touchy (till Dan and Kyle, and even then not too much). Basically all that means is that you’re really,  _really_  touch starved, and whatever Dan is doing is registering as unintentional teasing in your brain, regardless of what you try to tell it otherwise.

Your exhales get a little shaky, so you try to control them as your story telling slows down. At least your voice is somewhat steady.

It’s obvious to you that you should sit up or make him stop but it just feels so  _good_. You’re kind of keening for the touch and subconsciously pressing your legs together tightly.

You need to make this stop.

Not exactly wanting to say anything (because really, what could you say without making it infinitely awkward?) you stop talking, and maybe that was a mistake because now your brain isn’t trying to distract itself and can focus on Dan’s touch wholly. Your eyes flutter shut momentarily, but you catch yourself and force yourself to stare back up at the ceiling.

Has he really not noticed?

You glance up at him, but he looks the same as he did before he started doing this.

Something must finally click in Dan’s head, because his hand freezes. He looks down at you and you don’t have to register the sudden panicked look in his eyes to know that you’re completely flushed.

He jerks his hand back just as you shoot up and seat yourself some distance away on the couch, turning your head away and into your shoulder until you look somewhat normal again.

“Uh,” Dan mutters. He coughs awkwardly and stands up. You pray he doesn’t acknowledge what just happened and make it more awkward than it has to be. “I should,” he says with a tight voice. He doesn’t finish the sentence before he’s out the door.

Fuck.


	16. The Waters

“That show was amazing,” you exclaim, shutting the door to Dan’s apartment behind you. You and the guys had chilled and got a celebratory meal, but after that you all split up, the guys going back for a night with their girlfriends. It was pretty much an unspoken agreement that you and Dan were going to chill out with each other after. Besides, Dan’s flat is practically your second (or would it be third?) home now and it’s been a week since you last saw him.

Dan shrugs and pulls open the fridge, chucking you a nice cold bottle of water and taking one for himself. “It was alright.”

“Oh please,” you scoff, “Yeah it’s not going to be everyone up and screaming, but these are your first shows! It went as well as it possibly could have.”

“Yeah,” he mumbles, “I’m sure me tripping over my microphone cord at every possible moment was the ideal.”

You laugh and plop yourself on the couch, habitually turning the TV on before sitting cross-legged to face Dan who was doing the same. “Okay, that could have been avoided, but it was cu- amusing to see you all panicky up on stage.”

Dan’s jaw drops. “It’s not amusing! It’s humiliating!” He groans and drops his head into his hands. “Fucking hopeless.”

“Hey!” You complain, pulling his hands away until he drops them into his lap. “You were up there, and I was watching. As an observer, I have a better idea of how it went, alright? You guys were great. Stop beating yourself up!”

Dan gives you a look that you can’t quite decipher before letting out a small laugh. “Alright, fine. You win this time.”

He looks down at his fingers and doesn’t say anything for some time.

“How is she?”

You blink a few times. The background noise of the TV isn’t really serving much of a purpose, so you reach over and turn it off.

“She uh,” you start. You think back to the first day you reached there and saw her. “She’s okay, you know?”

Dan looks up at you when he hears the trembling in your voice, and now it’s your turn to look down at the couch, not being able to meet his gaze.

“She’s okay.” You reiterated the statement to reassure yourself, you both know it.

There’s a moment of silence before Dan says quietly, “Are you?”

You look up at him and feel the prickling behind your eyes. “I don’t know,” you answer honestly. You take a shaky breath before continuing. “I was just… I was so  _scared_  an-” you cut yourself off with a little squeak.

Dan nods, his eyes flickering across your face, his own expression laced with concern. “I know.”

You bite your lip to hold back a quiet sob as you feel the tears coming. Dan immediately takes one of your hands and squeezes it, not once shifting his attention from you. With his free hand he reaches for the tissue box on the table and hands you one.

“Thank you,” you sniffle, wiping away at the tears. You laugh self-depreciatingly, thinking that this whole thing is ridiculous. When you look back up, you find Dan smiling understandingly, his eyes warm and reassuring, just like they always are for you. Your stomach flips, and you think of what your mum said, how she said you should just  _tell_  him. You swallow down the butterflies and steel yourself over a bit.

This is the prime moment. This is the prime moment to just say –

Before you can hype yourself up enough to say a word, Dan brings a hand to your neck and tilts your chin up with his thumb, ducking his head down to place his lips on yours. It’s a gentle, meaningful kiss, and there’s a part of you that wants to collapse into the feeling.

Unfortunately, your mind is running a mile a minute, your heart beating just as fast. You can’t even think before you panic and break the kiss.

You hate the way Dan looks when you stand up and clench your fists, feeling sick to your stomach. He looks like a deer in headlights, only there’s something more hurt in his eyes that you don’t want to think about.

You don’t give Dan a chance to say a word before leaving and locking yourself in your own flat.

~~~

“What now?” you whine at your phone before picking it up. “What’s up Kyle?”

“Why don’t you tell me?” he retorts. You cringe and lie back down in your bed. You didn’t get much sleep except until after you showered at 6am. You figured since you were awake you might as well have, so you did. Right after that, you crashed.

“What do you mean?”

“Are we going to have an entire conversation in questions?

“This isn’t  _Whose Line Is It?_ , so no. What are you talking about? Can you please just be straightforward?”

You hear Kyle sigh through the phone and you pinch the bridge of your nose, knowing exactly what’s coming.

“What’s up?” he asks simply.

“Nothing.”

“Really? Because Dan told me he came to your door three times today and you haven’t answered once. And we both know you’re there. He’s worried.”

You stare at the ceiling and think about a ghosting touch through the fabric over your stomach and shut your eyes again, ignoring the thought. You take a deep breath and your mind is empty. “Did he tell you he kissed me?”

There’s a moment of silence, and you almost wonder if the phone got cut when you hear a rush of breath on the other end. “Wow…” he stammers. “But… But you…”

“What are you saying?” You sigh and run a hand through your hair. You don’t have time for riddles.

“Listen,” Kyle deadpans. “Stop thinking so much. Do me and yourself a favour and open the damn door, yeah?”

He hangs up without letting you respond.

You chew on your lip for some time before hauling your ass up and brushing your hair back so it looks a little less like you’ve been sleeping at inhumane hours.

Whatever you’re expecting, it isn’t to see Dan sitting in the hallway across from your door with his head in his hands. He looks up at the sound of the door having been opened, a look of relief flooding his features, before something like regret comes in instead. Your stomach tightens, because that is  _not_  what you want.

He stands up and slips inside after you, and the moment you shut the door he starts off.

“I’m sorry. I’m so fucking sorry I know I shouldn’t have done that, what with the timing and us just being - ”

“Dan.”

He looks up. He looks tired, too. You suddenly want to shroud him in a blanket and put him on the couch, or even in your bed, just so he can get a fucking break.

“You shouldn’t be. It was just… I just freaked out and overreacted. It’s not a big deal, really.”

“Okay,” Dan says hesitantly. His expression is a little pained, and the tension in the room could be cut with a knife.

The silence lasts for some time. You try to comb your brain, but come up empty handed, so you decide it’s best to just take your time and think it out.

“I didn’t mean to do what I did,” you start. “Running out on you like that… I shouldn’t have left so quickly.  _I’m_  sorry. I panicked and… I don’t know. I guess part of me doesn’t want you to think that I’ve been… I don’t know, that I’ve been using you our entire friendship or something because I care about you, I do. But I also really…”

The words are starting to turn to cotton in your mouth, and when your brain has finally caught up with your mouth, your heart rate starts to pick up again. You take a few deep breaths. Dan chews his lip and gestures for you to follow him to the couch.

When you’re seated and your mind is somewhat back on track, you sit up straight and nod to yourself. “I – I promised my mum I’d say this – that I’d tell you this.”

And Dan, well, he looks a little lost.

One shot.

“I think… I think I’m kind of, a  _little bit_  in love with you.”

You kind of stop breathing. You just said that.

Dan’s staring at you, his expression not in the least bit telling. You feel the heat rising in your cheeks.

“Okay, gosh, fuck I am, okay? I know I am and if you don’t feel the same way I’m sorry and I hope we can just forget this because I don’t want to fuck up our friendship. I just had to tell you. I felt like you at least deserved to know the truth.”

He doesn’t stop staring, and each second that passes by without him reacting makes you feel like being swallowed into a black hole would be much appreciate more and more.  _Dipshit, dipshit, dipshit._

Then Dan moves in and kisses you again.  _Oh, oh, oh._ It’s slower, and even softer than before. It takes you a moment to kiss him back, and when you do you swear you feel the curve of his smile against your lips. He nips at your lower lip ever so slightly, making your breath catch. Dan part from the kiss and rests his forehead against yours.

He bites the inside of his lip before saying lowly, “I think I’m kind of a little bit in love with you, too.” He laughs shortly, and when he leans back in you’re almost sure you can hear your own heartbeat pounding. You move a little closer to him and rest a hand on his chest. You swear you can feel his heart racing a little too.

It’s sweet and slow, and when Dan deepens the kiss you whine appreciatively into his mouth. When he pulls back he does that trademark breathy laugh that makes your insides flutter and scratches the back of his neck.

You watch him for a minute, the way he smiles down at his hands and fiddles about. You lean towards him and wrap your arms around his torso, and Dan shuffles a bit so the two of you can lie on the couch comfortably. Neither of you say anything for a while, but the silence filled with the breathing and the lack of movement compensated for by the proximity is enough.

“You know the guys had a bet pool going,” Dan mutters.

“What.”

“Kyle had the most faith in us,” Dan says. A smile tugs at your lips, and you wonder how long Dan knew for, and what it meant. “I’m pretty sure he wins the pot, but… If you don’t mind I’d like to keep it quiet for a couple of days.”

“Yeah,” you reply, “yeah, that sounds good.”

“Mmm,” Dan hums. He presses a kiss to the top of your head and pulls you closer.

 


	17. Caught

\-- _tell mum I did it._ you text your sister, a sleepy smile on your face when you wake up in your bed the next morning. You and Dan had fallen asleep on the couch, but after the two of you woke up from being uncomfortable in the middle of the night, you both blushed and agreed to split for the night. Dan ducked in and gave you a quick kiss before you left, and you felt your stomach flutter.

\- _did what exactly?_

_\-- just tell her. she’ll know._ You bite your lip and let it go when you smile too big.

_\- whatever you say ma’am_

~~~

You finally got a part time job at a decent paying restaurant to go along with your studies, but even with all the time you’ve lost, you and Dan find time to spend together, what with living a few doors away. It’s not ideal, and not enough, but you take what you can get.

One night when you’re curled against him on the couch watching _Mulholland Drive_ as per Dan’s orders, Dan shuffles a little and you sit up.

“So,” Dan mutters, “uhm.”

“Yeah?” you reply, a coy smile on your lips.

Dan laughs and ducks his head before looking back up at you, a nervous smile playing on his lips. “When are you free?”

“Depends,” you reply, “what are you asking for?”

Dan grimaces, knowing his own response won’t come out as nicely as he would like. “Uh… I want to… Would you like to… I’m. Shit, fuck I’m terrible at this.”

You laugh and reach over to pinch Dan’s cheek lightly, at which he scrunches his nose. “It’s been a couple of weeks; I think you should be a little cooler than this.”

Dan scoffs, but after a moment he’s back to his nervous self. “Do you want to go to dinner with me?”

The corner of your lip turns up in a smile but you hold it down and tease him a little. “Dinner? With you? I suppose I could make time…”

You catch a touch of colour rising in Dan’s cheek as he laughs airily. He looks absolutely adorable and you can’t resist leaning in to kiss him, catching him off guard.

“I’m free on Friday night. Don’t have a shift then. In other words, I’d love to.”

Dan grins, revealing his crooked tooth for a moment before he drops his head into a pillow and smiles into it.

You still feel light and like you’re a teenager with a crush when Dan pulls you back into him, rewinding the movie some.

~~~

You’re staring at your closet, contemplating what to wear. Casual dressy is what you’re meant to go for, but what the fuck does that even mean?

You feel like slapping yourself across the head. You’ve been friends with Dan for ages and spent loads of times with him, and _now_ you’re stressing out about what to wear? You run through your pile of clothes again and groan with frustration. Why now?

You hear a tiny yelp that makes you jump nervously and turn to see where the sound came from. Dan’s at your bedroom door peeking in and his face is _bright fucking red_. Like, more than ever. It takes you a second to remember that you’re half naked in your fucking underwear, and the moment you do, you seek refuge under your bedsheets. You feel the heat flush through you.

“I wanted to surprise you and say hi,” Dan says, his voice barely above a squeak. You can’t even _look_ at him.

_Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck._

Dan mumbles something inaudibly and leaves the doorway, you panicking in bed. You forgot you even gave him a key for emergencies (though you’d never expected he’d have to – or want to – use it), and with that in mind it’s not entirely his fault.

You get a little idea and scrunch your nose, but knowing the sounds of your apartment, you can tell Dan’s heading to leave and not just sit down, so you bite your lip and go along with it. Alright.

You giggle nervously and peek out the door before stepping out whole and catching up to place a hand on Dan’s shoulder.

“Stay,” you tell him, and he turns around, his face almost regaining its colour before he realizes you haven’t put anything on. You swallow down your nervousness and insecurities, relishing in the way that Dan’s eyes keep flickering up and down, and then anywhere else around the room but at you.

“I couldn’t figure out what to wear,” you add, and he looks at you blinking rapidly. You can kind of tell he’s trying to keep his eyes up, and that with the blushing is too much. You can’t help the grin that takes over before you decide to tease him by getting up on your tiptoes and placing a soft, lingering kiss on his lips. The small whine Dan lets out is more than satisfactory, kindling warmth in your stomach.

He goes to deepen the kiss and pull you closer, but when his hands grasp onto your hips you both get the friendly reminder that you’re only in your underwear, the cold touch making you gasp into his mouth.

The touch feels good; so good that you have to break the kiss and drop your head to his shoulder, your breath coming in short, hot puffs against Dan’s shirt.

For a while Dan leaves his hands on your skin, but you can tell by his minute fidgeting that he feels a little awkward, and even though you’re loving it you can’t admit it’s a little awkward for you too. You do something that you don’t normally do, but have found yourself doing a little more often with Dan now, and let out a short giggle before pulling back.

“I’ll change real quick,” you promise, “wouldn’t wanna be late.”

You turn on your heel and can’t resist swaying your hips a bit, grinning victoriously when you hear Dan’s tiny pained squeak.

Honestly, you were a little nervous about the progression of your relationship, especially in… _that_ plane, what with your inevitable insecurities. Despite that initial twist of your stomach that caused you to hide off the bat, you think it was an overall success. Yeah, you’re probably still going to be anxious when it comes to it, but at least you know he won’t straight up laugh at your body.

With five more minutes of fussing, you decide on a knee length black dress with a floral print. Casual but cute seems about right, yeah? You’re still being iffy about it even after you’re completely ready and decide to step out.

When Dan stands up from the couch he’s still flustered, which you find absolutely endearing. He looks you up and down, a shy smile growing on his lips before his gaze meets yours. Your fingers are playing with the latch on the pocketbook when it happens. He’s got this look in his eyes, a warm and appreciative air that makes your heart skip. It’s not the first time he’s looked at you like that, even from before you got the guts to tell him the truth.

You walk further out of the hallway and closer to the kitchen, and Dan silently joins you. Your eyes are cast downwards when he cups your cheek and gives you a sweet kiss. It makes your chest swell with excitement and _hope_.

He breaks off, a small smile lingering on his lips, eyes partly shut. You swallow down your butterflies and let yourself be content with the way Dan’s hands slips into yours.

“Shall we?”

~~~

The restaurant is a locally owned one, small and cosy with dim lighting. It’s pleasant, but not so fancy that you feel underdressed.

The dinner started out alright, but you were both a little quiet, the conversation sparse. It wasn’t like you didn’t know what to say; you’d talked with Dan plenty before for way longer than the duration of the dinner. Maybe it was just the circumstances.

“This is ridiculous,” you say, twirling your fork in your pasta, but looking straight at Dan. He looks up with wide eyes, only adding to the owlish look that his tall hair gives him. “We should be able to talk!”

“Yeah,” Dan huffs. There’s another moment of silence.

“And _you_ ,” you add, reaching over to rest your hand atop one of Dan’s, “need to stop blushing every time you think about what happened back at the flat. Besides, you better get used to it.”

The red flares up on Dan’s cheeks again, and you can’t help but to laugh when you pull your hand back. Dan looks slightly offended, but you know it’s not going to hurt his ego that much. It’s cute.

“We need to chill out,” you say seriously. Dan gives a defeated and lets out a long exhale before dropping his head down a little. It’s endearing in a way that only Dan can pull off, and when Dan looks back up to see you smiling at him, it only makes his own smile grow.

He nudges your foot under the table and you nudge back, but neither of you decide to move away.

The silence that follows after you continue your meal is more comfortable, the air buzzing with something you can’t quite put your finger on. It feels exciting, new, good, and a little freaky. You don’t think you’ve ever felt this way before, at least not so easily.

Just for a little test you move your foot away ever so slightly, and without thinking Dan moves his foot closer again. A giggle bubbles out of your mouth, and Dan looks confused until he notices what just happened, flushing a beautiful shade of red that compliments the décor of the restaurant.

 ~~~

The two of you managed to get some easy flowing conversation going, you talking about your job and Dan filling you in on the plans the band has for new tracks and recording.

You furrow your eyebrows. There’s nothing you just said that could’ve caused Dan’s eyes to widen in horror the way they just did, so why…?

“Dan on a date?” you hear the voice from somewhere behind you. You register it as Will’s and immediately cringe.

“Wonder who he’s got tied up now,” Kyle jokes.

“Probably not the one he wants to tie up,” Woody chimes in. _Oh._

The three of them shut up when they see that you’re the one sitting across from Dan.

You decide to break the silence with through your grimace, squeaking, “Hi.”

They stare between the two of you, narrowing their eyes at Dan as if to figure out if it’s a real date this time. Dan just groans and turns away from their scrutinizing glares. Woody and Will grumble before digging their hands into their wallets and slapping two twenties into Kyle’s palm.

Kyle seems to be the only one who’s getting pleasure out of this encounter, if his shit-eating grin is any indication. He winks at you gratefully, making you laugh.

You nudge Dan’s foot and he looks up at you, his expression pained and hopeless. You scrunch your face and he sighs before looking up at the guys.

“I knew it,” Kyle announces, grinning down at his friend, “I knew it, I knew it, I knew it!” He turns to you and points his finger at you. “You’re telling me everything later.”

Despite Dan’s noise of protest, you nod.

“Why are you guys even here?” Dan asks ruefully.

Will gestures over to a table on the far end of the restaurant where their three girls are. “Triple date night. Had we known, it could’ve been a quadruple.”

Dan huffs, and thankfully for everyone, Will drags the other two away, Woody still steaming about the loss of the bet. He turns back around and marches back to your table. “Who made the first move?”

Dan freezes and you smirk at the memory, glancing meaningfully towards Dan.

“What the fuck?” Woody exclaims, albeit quietly enough to not get kicked out. “Fuck I was sure he’d be a prissy little shit and hold off saying anything for another two months at _least_.”

You shrug and watch him walk off grumpily, probably wondering how he could predict Dan’s actions so terribly.

“They were bound to find out one way or another,” you say, turning back to Dan as he lets out a groan.

“Yeah but I was hoping later rather than sooner,” he admits.

You laugh and nudge his foot again.

“We’re done, right?” Dan nods. “Wanna go? We can join the others, or-”

“We’re going back,” Dan decides before you finish. “I’m not sitting with those arseholes right now.”

You smile and take a quick sip of water before standing up. You leave hand in hand, not bothering to entertain the others by looking their way. You can’t remember the last time you felt this happy.

~~~

The sentence you’re saying as you step into your apartment is cut off by the unmistakable scent of –

“Muffins,” Dan says dreamily, walking into the kitchen. You frown, not remembering having made any. You follow him and see a basket with a little folded paper on the top.

- _Because yours were cool and I owe you for how many of them I ate_. _Kyle. P.s. don’t let Dan see these._

Dan pouts at the note and whines, “Why not?”

You scoff and pick one off the top, heading to the couch. “Probably because he knows you’ve got a problem.”

“It’s more of a weakness,” Dan mutters, taking one of his own and following you. “Gosh. That was a fucking mess.”

“Come on, it wasn’t _that_ bad,” you insist, kicking your feet up on the coffee table. Dan folds a leg underneath himself as he joins you, cautiously but surely placing an arm across the back of your couch, almost across your shoulders.

Dan rubs the back of his neck with his other hand. “It was pretty bad. Maybe not the confrontation bit, but at least the part about it being our first date.”

You smile reflexively at the words. “I don’t know. I thought it was pretty good. I mean, the food was decent, the guy across from me wasn’t half bad.”

“Ha ha,” Dan deadpans. He lifts the arm that’s behind you and holds his forehead. “I can’t believe Kyle’s going to talk to _you_ about how it all happened.”

“Well,” you shrug, “girls do gossip better.”

“Bullshit. Guys gossip more than women know.”

“Oh we know,” you reply with a grin. “Kyle gossips more than any girl I’ve ever known, and I used to have a friend who was one of those typical too popular kids at school.”

“That’s sad.”

You hum affirmatively. “Don’t tell him that, though. I love hearing the stuff he’s got to tell me about you.”

“Wait, what has he sai-”

You’re both cut off by a shrill alarm.

You stare at Dan, just as he mutters, “You’re fucking kidding me,” under his breath.

You both laugh and get up to evacuate, but Dan holds off and says, “One sec.” Deciding you won’t leave without him, you wait for him to come back from… your bedroom?

Dan comes back out with your blanket piled up in his arms.

“What?” he asks when he sees you biting back a smile, warmth coursing through you.

“Nothing,” you say quietly, gesturing for him to follow you.

Both of you, vaguely lamenting your muffins that you set aside, follow the crowd that’s loathing the fact that their nighttime activities have been interrupted just for this. At least one couple looks like they’d been getting a little frisky right before the alarm, what with the rumpled clothing and mussed hair, topped off with the bleary eyes and grumpy expressions.

You’re outside walking to the gathering spot when you mutter, “Timing.”

“Too cheesy,” Dan comments.

“Yeah, that was totally set up. I refuse to believe our lives are actually _that_ cheesy.”

Dan laughs warmly and steps behind you when you’re stood still, wrapping his arms around you so the blanket surrounds you too.

“Was this so I don’t get cold this time?”

Dan mumbles something into your neck before he presses a light kiss behind your ear.

“It’s not even that cold out at this time of year,” you inform him. Even though you say it, you’re not exactly going to complain at the way Dan’s cuddling you from behind, making your stomach do all sorts of new things that makes you feel ridiculous.

“I know,” Dan admits shyly, “but then I wouldn’t get to do this.”

You grin as you look forwards towards the building. This feels good. It feels _right_. “You know you’re actually terribly cheesy yourself.”

Dan whines disapprovingly, but is quick to add, “But you like it.”

“Yeah, I do.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to my best friend [Abbey](http://bxdblood.tumblr.com) for her endless support from the very beginnings to the eventless hiatuses and the tiresome end. I love you more than words can explain.  
> Thank you to my other buddies [India](http://bawsteal.tumblr.com) and [Sarah](http://trashtille.tumblr.com) for your guys' undying support and cheerleading. You got me through the last leg of this damn fic haha.  
> Thank you to [Jamie](http://guacamolesatlaw.tumblr.com/) for ever giving this fic a chance and posting it to the fic blog, and then asking me to join. It has been such a wonderful experience and I'm so grateful for your friendship.  
> Lastly, thank you to the readers. You guys made me turn this oneshot into a chaptered mess that I fell in love with. Your likes, comments, reblogs, and messages have always helped me.


End file.
